False accusations of sexual abuse are terrible no matter the circumstances. If someone lies about having been the victim of sexual assault just to tarnish the reputation of the alleged perpetrator, then the alleged abuser is alone in his or her ordeal. If, however, a therapist or other adult continually suggests to children that a family member sexually abused them, then not only does the alleged abuser suffer, but the children endure their own kind of trauma. Not only do they lose their trust in a family member, but they also suffer the trauma of having to imagine being abused by someone they loved even though that abuse never happened.
The pain of no one believing you that you have been sexually abused is unbearable, but so is the pain of no one believing that you have not been sexually abused and knowing that your family members are being punished for something they did not do. This is the story of Gabby Sones, a young Texas woman who went public with the story of how adults in her life and in the Texas legal system pressured her to make false accusations of sexual abuse against her birth parents, and of how she rebuilt her relationship with her parents after the accusations.
The False Accusations and the Truth
Gabby Sones grew up in East Texas with her parents, Jimmy and Sheila, and with Shelby, Hunter, and Carly, the children of her older sister Shauntel. When Gabby was in first grade, Child Protective Services workers took her out of class and questioned her about whether she had ever been sexually abused. Gabby’s niece Carly had told adults that she herself had been sexually abused, and CPS wanted to know if Gabby had any knowledge of the events. The social workers suggested to Gabby that she and her nieces and nephew had been made to perform suggestive dances in front of paying customers, although Gabby had no memory of such events. The authorities sent Gabby to live with Margie Cantrell, who was famous for two things: fostering many children and leveling claims of child sexual abuse against adults in the community.
What followed was a years-long ordeal in which Gabby was called on to testify against her parents and five other adults. Attorneys asked her leading questions, and her foster parents and social workers continued to insist that Gabby’s birth parents had abused her. When Gabby was in her early teens, she had had enough of testifying about horrific events she could not remember experiencing. She wrote a letter to prosecutors, threatening to commit suicide if she ever had to testify again. Next, she sought out her biological relatives on Facebook, ultimately reuniting with her mother and father, who had divorced when Gabby was 6. She ran away from her foster family and moved in with her mother. With the help of Texas Monthly journalist Michael Hall, she made the story public.
Contact Madrid Law About False Allegations of Sexual Assault
It only takes one sufficiently questioning voice to establish reasonable doubt in a criminal case. If you know that the allegations against you are false, a defense lawyer can help you convince the jury that you are not guilty. Contact Madrid Law in Houston for a consultation.
