FULL TEXT (Article 1 of 3): Omaha, Neb. – A woman who
falsely accused a man of raping her was ordered to run radio and newspaper
advertisements apologizing to him. But the man says the sentence will not undo
the damage.
“You can’t change a wrong to a right,” said Gary Nitsch. “I
lost a job. I had to get a lawyer. The kids at school were saying to my kids,
“Your dad’s a rapist.”
And the ads may never be printed or aired.
Elizabeth Irene Richardson, 24, is considering appealing the
sentence, which the Nebraska Civil Liberties Union says may be cruel and
unusual punishment.
Richardson accusing Nitsch, 44, of Overton, of raping her in
September 1988. she reportedly told police that he raped her when he came to
her housed in search of a painting job.
Nitsch was arrested and charged with sexual assault, but the
case was dropped in February this year for lack of strong physical evidence.
Word reached authorities that Richardson has told friends
the rape was a hoax. Her attorney, Todd McKeone, said Richardson admitted she
made up the accusations to get attention from her husband, a trucker who is
often away from home.
Richardson pleaded guilty to perjury in April and was sentenced
June 8, according to press reports.
A judge ordered Richardson to apologize to Nitsch in
half-page advertisements in every newspaper and on commercials on each radio
station in Dawson County, a country of about 22,000 in central Nebraska.
The media campaign was expected to cost about $1,000, her
attorneys said. She also was sentenced to 180 days in jail and was placed on
two years’ probation.
A panel of state civil liberties union attorneys who
reviewed the case said the sentence may violate Richardson’s rights under the
Eighth and 14th amendments.
The Eighth Amendment protects individuals against cruel and unusual punishment and the 14th Amendment ensures due process.
The organization is “concerned about the scarlet letter
approach in sentencing,” said Bill Schatz, NCLU executive director. “Suppose
someone is arrested for shoplifting. Are we going to make him wear a sign
saying he’s a convicted shoplifter? Is there such a thing as punishment fitting
crime?”
If the case is appealed, the organization will offer
research services and may file a friend-of-the court brief, Schatz said.
Nitsch said he was still puzzled about how his name came up
in the rape charge.
He said he met Richardson once during the spring or summer
of 1988 when he went to her house inquiring about the painting job she had
advertised.
“I would just like to have someone tell me how I was named,”
he said.
He said his ordeal has taken a toll on his family.
He said his wife, Naomi, “doesn’t like to come to town and
face people.” His 18-year-old daughter quit high school in March because of the
was she was being treated, Nitsch said.
“We’ve lived in a trailer house since 1973,” he said. “We’re
saving for a home, but when you have attorneys’ fees, it’s hard.”
Nitsch said he was fired from his job as a driver after
being questioned at work by authorities and jailed for three days. He’s now a
part-time construction worker.
He said he wants a full-time job but “people want clean
help. They don’t want somebody that’s been in trouble with the law.”
“I used to go into
town and drink coffee and joke with people, but everything just kind of turned
sour,” Nitsch said.
“The first year, I was so depressed I didn’t want people to
see me,” he said. “If I went into town I had to have somebody drive me so I
could scoot down in the seat so nobody would see me.”
Nitsch said he is also bitter about the way authorities
handled his case. His attorneys are suing four sheriff’s deputies for $100,000,
claiming he was arrested and his home was searched without cause.
“Mr. Nitsch is apparently the victim of some lies. But that
is not the fault of the sheriff’s department,” said Randy Goyette, an attorney
representing the Dawson County Sherfiff’s Office.
Jim O’Rourke, now a district court judge, was Dawson County
attorney at the time.
“I believe that the case was very professionally and
accurately handled,” O’Rourke said. “We went with what we had and we did the
best we could.”
O’Rourke said Richardson decided not to pursue the case
after he told her the trial would be difficult for her without corroborating
evidence.
[“Woman Must Apologize in Ads For Falsely Accusing Man of
Rape,” Sarasota Herald Tribune (Manatee AM Edition), Jul. 3, 1990, p. 2A]
***
FULL TEXT (Article 2 of 3): Lexington, Neb. – A woman
sentenced to apologize in radio and newspaper ads to a man she falsely accused
of raping her won’t appeal the sentence to the state Supreme Court, her
attorney said Friday.
An attorney for Elizabeth Irene Richardson said he mailed a
dismissal of the appeal to the
Nebraska Supreme Court on Thursday.
Nebraska Supreme Court on Thursday.
Ms. Richardson, 24, did not want to risk having a judge gave
her a longer jail sentence if the Supreme Court decided she could not be
ordered to pay for the advertisements as a condition of probation, said defense
attorney Tod McKeone.
“There’s still some possibility of not having to run them
(the ads),” he said.
He said the defense was considering alternatives to
appealing the sentence to a higher court, including possibly filing a motion
asking the district court for a sentence reduction.
“It would have been an interesting case to test this kind of
sentencing to see if it would send up under constitutional grounds,” McKeone
said.
Ms. Richardson, a former Lexington resident, was sentenced
June 8 to 180 days in jail and was placed on two years probation for perjury.
A Dawson County District Court judge also ordered Ms.
Richardson to apologise to Gary Nitsch in a half-page advertisement in every
newspaper and a primetime spot in each radio station in Dawson, a central
Nebraska county of about 22,000 people.
Ms. Richardson now lives in Overton, had accused Nitsch, 44,
of Overton of raping her in September 1988. he was arrested and charged with
sexual assault. Ms. Richardson told friends the rape was a hoax. She was
convicted of her perjury last February. County attorney John Marsh said the
woman’s was trying to get the attention of her husband, a truck driver who was
often away from home.
Authorities later learned that Ms. Richardson told friends
the rape was a hoax. She was convicted of perjury last February. County
attorney John Marsh said the woman’s was trying to get the attention of her
husband, a truck driver who was often away from home.
Nitsch, who said he had met the woman only briefly when he went
to her house inquiring about a painting job she had advertised, has said that
as a result of the false charge, he lost his job and his family was harassed.
[“Woman in phony rape case pulls appeal,” syndicated (AP),
the Tuscaloosa News (Al.), Jul. 22, 1990, 2F]
***
FULL
TEXT (Article 3 of 3): Lexington, Neb. - A woman who falsely accused a man of
rape apologized Sunday in court-ordered radio ads, saying she hopes time will
heal the damage to. the man's reputation. Elizabeth Irene Richardson, 24, was ordered
to run radio and newspaper ads throughout Dawson
County
in central Nebraska as part of her sentence for a perjury conviction last
February. She was later to begin a six-month jail term for falsely accusing
Gary Nitsch, 44.
"I
want the public to know that these allegations were not true and that I made up
the story for personal reasons," Ms. Richardson said in the radio ad.
"While I realize there is nothing I can really do or say to repair the
damage I have caused, I sincerely pray that time will heal the wounds my false
allegation have inflicted on Mr. Nitsch and his family," she said. Ms.
Richardson accused Nitsch of raping her in September 1988. He was charged with
sexual assault, but the case was dropped for lack of physical evidence.
[“Woman apologizes for false charges,” The
Hutchinson News (Ka.), Sep. 3, 1990, p. 5]
***
[964-10/25/21]
***
No comments:
Post a Comment