Answering a destructive lie

Just when I think the human race has redeemed itself and is genuinely good I become privy to information that officially changes my mind.

One of the very first stories I remember learning as a child was “the Boy Who Cried Wolf.” The tale, told to countless children since seemingly the beginning of time, teaches us a very basic moral: Don’t lie, especially about life-threatening situations.

Earlier this week, I caught a news conference held by Portland Police Chief James Craig pleading with the public to come forward with information on a potential gang-rape reported the night before.

Hearing about such an astoundingly violent, random and inhumane act happening so close to home was bone-chilling. That’s just not the kind of thing you hear about happening in the state of Maine.

The alleged victim reported Monday night that she was walking along Portland’s Back Cove trail when she heard five men shouting lewd remarks to her. She claimed she was then attacked by them and sexually assaulted.

The 22-year-old woman described her attackers as all being black men in their 20s.

Then, she claimed, a passing motorist shouted at them and they took off. She said she then walked home and her roommate called the police.

On Tuesday, as Craig was appealing for information about the five men Morin said attacked her, detectives were re-interviewing the alleged victim. During that time, she admitted to the detectives that she had made the story up as a reaction to a fight she had with her partner.

So in plain English, she lied. About being violently raped by five men. Seriously? Who does that?

Subsequently, and rightfully so, she has been charged with filing a false report. If found guilty, she could face up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $2,000. If she is indeed guilty I hope they throw the book at her.

Her accusations are so wrong on so many levels, but the worst part of it is the blatant disregard to the seriousness of what she claimed these fabricated men supposedly did to her.

Violent rape is no small accusation and ranks right up there with murder in my book. It undeniably changes the course of the victim’s life. It robs them of their trust of the human race. It changes who they are, how they view the world and creates a nightmare they will carry with them until the day they die.

How could someone just lie about something like that?

Fabricating a rape in any way, shape or form is not only morally and ethically just wrong but can also create lasting affect on the responding officers. They are trained to take those accusations as truth until proven otherwise, but what happens when they’re planted with that seed of doubt that the story could be just a fabrication? Will they take the next victim as seriously as they may have before?

Honestly, in their shoes, I’m not sure I could without having some doubts, so it’s probably a good thing I’m not a police officer.

There were a couple red flags in her story but the responding officers did their job well and took her seriously anyway, such as the fact she refused to seek medical treatment where they could test her for DNA, a crucial element in proving a rapist guilty in a court of law.

And then there’s the racial undertones to her accusation. Again, she described her ”˜attackers’ as being black men.

Considering the falsehood of the report, why in the world would she say they were all black? With racism there is usually an undertone of fear fueling the fire of hate. Filing a report that her attackers were black just perpetuates that fear. What I really don’t understand is, given the fact that the young woman herself is black, shouldn’t she know better?

Given her age, perhaps her stunt this week was partly the stupidity of youth. She probably didn’t realize the severity of the accusations she was making until it was too late.

But, given a thread of common sense and regardless of her motivation to make such a ridiculously idiotic move she should have known better. Her stunt put fear in the hearts of anyone who watched that press conference, responded to her call and interviewed her that a gang of rapists were roaming free in Portland. She wasted already tapped tax dollars and resources. Over an argument with her partner?

Fortunately, it appears her wolf-crying goose is cooked.

”“ Elizabeth Reilly can be reached at elizabethreilly1@yahoo.com.