One month ago, I was in court over a traffic accident. The other person, while we were in court, started showing me his fists and threatened me and my wife. I notified the judge and she seemed to ignore it.
After the court time, I told the judge that this is unheard of. As I was walking out of the court room, the policeman said that I could report him. So, I did. I received a document stating that there wasn’t enough evidence to charge him. It was shocking. It’s as if they ignored everything.
Now, I got a phone call from a police officer stating that my this person is charging me with false accusation, which is a criminal offense, and the detective is asking me to come in and give my statement.
Why is this a criminal offense and what is the best option (besides leaving the country)? Does anybody have any good legal advice?
The fact that the threat was ignored and a false accusation charge was allowed to proceed seems to me that the other guy has some major guanxi that you don’t or he made so much noise they felt compelled to act.
Firehopper is right, you need a lawyer, you can look up the legal aid foundation for a consultation if you wish or hire your own. I wouldn’t go to the meeting without one.
Check the transcript for accuracy and be prepared to challenge it by citing the audio recording. The transcript of a summary trial is allowed to omit anything the court considers unimportant.
Without a video recording, I doubt that he can prove anything.
If the alleged threats were verbal, then maybe an audio recording would help. But if they were mouthed, and just physical movements, then he will need video proof. @ShenKeng did you happen to take a video with a phone?
No, I failed to take a video. It has been some time, about a month. I thought everything was finished and over. I am still going to try and see if there is everything that I can get from the court, but I’m not hopeful. Truthfully, I had totally forgotten about it until the detective called me.
The attorney that I spoke to (free attorney) said that because there wasn’t enough evidence to prosecute, they didn’t go forward. However, there was evidence. According to her, because there was evidence, it shouldn’t be false accusation. There just wasn’t enough evidence. Does this sound reasonable as a defense?
Limitations (“extinctive prescription” iirc) are found in the Civil Code and the Criminal Code (both available in the MOJ database linked to above). The length of time depends on several factors.
You can always try another lawyer. It’s a good idea for any case that’s not completely straightforward.
