Man sentenced despite victim recanting

[The Straight Story]

Man sentenced despite victim recanting
Published: 01/09/2006 10:50 AM
By: Associated Press - Associated Press

WATERLOO, IA - A man was sentenced to 25 years in prison on sexual abuse and burglary charges, despite the victim recanting her allegation.

A jury found Montrell Deshawn Anderson, 28, of Waterloo, guilty of first-degree burglary and second-degree sexual abuse following trial in November.
...

The woman testified at trial for the prosecution, but returned the following day as a defense witness and minimized the burglary saying Anderson had a key to her home.

The woman also testified that Anderson didn't assault her.

http://www.gazetteonline.com/2006/01/09/Home/recant.htm

[sweetm2475]

1. huh??

shouldn't he at least get a new trial? the witness recanted! but the prosecutors think she was lying? shouldn't a jury be able to decide that? :wtf:

[The Straight Story]

2. seems odd to me as well

At least a new trial or they should charge her for lying. Something should change somewhere but it seems what she said had no efect in any direction.

[William769]

3. Apparently a jury did decide that..

[sweetm2475]

4. yeah, you're right, dumb slip on my part..

but that just makes it an even bigger :wtf:

[sui generis]

5. it'll lose on appeal

If there is a correlation between the charges and sentencing quidelines and the charges have changed to fall under different guidelines then it's a classic mistrial.

[FreedomAngel82]

13. I'd get him a new trial too

Not too long ago here on the local news there was a story of this guy who just got out of jail for twenty years later because he went to jail for a girl who said he raped her but later found out that she was a liar and he spent twenty years in jail for nothing.

[Benhurst]

6. This is BushAmerica. The man had a trial. It doesn't matter

whether he's guilty or not, or whether or not the trial was fair, for that matter. He's had his day in court. Time for him to start serving time, big time.

Move on. There's nothing to see here.

[Debi]

7. She didn't actually recant as much as tried to minimize the crime

after she found out how much jail time the defendant would receive. The acts of the defendant didn't change.

[The Straight Story]

9. well what that brings up to me is - is she feeling guilty and why?

If she lied originally now maybe she feels bad.

[Debi]

11. If she lied she'll be charged w/perjury -

but it sounds like (at least in the story here and a similar story in the Waterloo/Cedar Falls Courier) the facts haven't changed, only that she feels bad that he received such a stiff sentence.

[Nikki Stone 1]

17. Or maybe someone threatened her

This kind of recanting sometimes happens in domestic abuse cases. It's not a real recanting--the crime did happen--but abused women have a tendancy to feel they've done a horrible thing by bringing their abuser to justice. Or, in some cases, they get threatened.

Hard to tell here. More evidence is needed.

[sweetm2475]

10. unless she was lying in the first place, maybe he DID have a key,

and for whatever reason she didn't originally want people to know that. I don't know the tiny details of the story, I didn't sit on the jury, but it just seems that if there was a discrepancy in the testimony of the defendant, it should be looked into further.

[Debi]

12. His having a key isn't the issue in a burglary charge

It's whether or not he was allowed to enter the home when he did. (If he forced his way in or if he used the key to unlock the door when the door was locked to keep him out then he committed burglary - at least in the state of Iowa).

[sweetm2475]

14. i know that, it's just that if she was lying about that, then you have to

wonder why, and what else was she lying about? maybe nothing. but if a man is to be sentenced, shouldn't those questions be resolved?

[Debi]

15. I'm sure they will be during the post-trial process

but I don't think she was lying about the key, or even if she was that lie (or maybe omission of that fact) doesn't change the elements of the charge of burglary that he was convicted under.

I also think that, if she lied, she'll be charged w/perjury which oddly enough hasn't happened yet.

We also have to remember that this was a full-on trial and she was only one witness. We don't know what else was used to convict this person (evidence or other testimony).

[ComerPerro]

8. Lets see if we can't get him executed

He commited a crime! He has to die!

:sarcasm:

[wake.up.america]

16. How about an investigation?