Biurny Peguero Gonzalez allegedly was embarrassed when her friends were berating her for ditching them at a bar. Instead of claiming some urgent call or just telling the truth that she got into a guy’s car, she elected to cry rape. She stuck to her story through a trial and through years of incarceration of William McCaffrey for a rape that he did not commit. She has now been sentenced to three years for perjury — less than the four years that McCaffrey spent in prison.
Gonzalez begged the court for mercy on behalf of her two children. The truth came out after DNA evidence exonerated McCaffrey.
Prosecutors wanted more time, which is understandable since she is unlikely to spend half the time of McCaffrey. There is also no indication that the prosecutors are taking steps to discipline the officials who pushed through the prosecution with a striking absence of supporting evidence.
Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Richard Carruthers who sentenced McCaffrey expressed regrets for both his sentencing of McCaffrey in 2006 and his words to him at that time: “I want to convey my personal regret for having participated, albeit unknowingly, in this injustice. Given the startling turn of events, I now retract what I said about you.”
As for McCaffrey, he simply said “I wish her the best of luck. Jail isn’t easy.” On the positive side, at least she knows she will be serving for a crime that she actually committed.
For the full story, click here.
I hope to see more people who have deliberately lied about sex crimes that were never committed prosecuted and convicted of perjury as well. Deliberate false accusers who do this probably have a very good idea what happens to any person accused of a sex crime. The presumption is automatically “guilty until proven innocent” and anyone so accused is at serious risk of harm by inmates at any jail or prison. If more people were prosecuted and convicted on perjury charges themselves for KNOWINGLY making a false accusation of a sex crime, they might think more than twice before they falsely accuse someone simply to even a score.
Faking rape is an insult to every rape victim. I hope that woman realizes that thanks to her, countless victims will not be taken seriously, or simply will not take action by fear of not being taken seriously.
Otherwise, I don’t think her jail time should be related to his jail time (which would lean towards poetic justice); Rather, efforts should be made to compensate him for what he’s been through, at her expense.
Her sentence should have been the same as the original sentence procured by her perjury.
The penalty for perjury should always be the same as the potential punishment for whatever charge perjured testimony was given. Yes, that means if you perjure yourself in a death penalty case, you can face the death penalty for perjury.
It’s about time the courts started giving women like this some type of punishment, although I would suggest a longer term than 3 years. Not only does this type of woman ruin the lives of innocent men and their families, but they also cause actual rape victims to perpetually be on trial in real cases.
This is a terrible story. Rape already has its challenges in front of juries without having some morally bankrupt woman jailing an innocent guy. What a shame.
Grand Jury Indicts Peguero Gonzalez in Lie Rape Hoax
http://www.theblackurbantimes.com/2009/12/grand-jury-indicts-peguero-gonzalez-in.html
Woman Gets 1 to 3 Years for Lying About Rape; Is Punishment Fair?
This is what gets me, the woman would have let him finish the term if she had not gotten busted and caught lying. The following is a exert out of the story. I have words to say to her and I would be banned from this list serve for saying them here.
Gonzalez, a mother of two children, recanted her story last year after new DNA evidence proved she’d been lying and a priest to whom she’d confessed urged her to come clean.
http://www.opposingviews.com/asks/woman-gets-1-to-3-years-for-lying-about-rape-is-punishment-fair/answers
You know this is the problem with truth in sentencing or mandatory minimums. The amount of time that the perosn actually spends will be much less that the 4 of 20 William McCaffrey served.
Now the question comes done will this be an episode on Law and Order or White Collar, where they already have a Neal Caffrey? Only time will tell. And if the writers of the show have been as creative as they have been so far, then it will make a great one.
This is a better link and by the way. The Supreme Court in New York is the Original Trial Court for those of you that did not know it. It is equivalent to the District Court in Texas, Circuit Court in a number of states. They handle only felony matters or high misdemeanors.
This is a better link to the original story.
http://truthinjustice.org/mccaffrey.htm