She asked the state to pay for her rape kit and, as a result, she ended up charged with a crime, accused of making a fraudulent claim. This St. George woman even spent time in jail.
Prosecutors backed off and dropped the case. Authorities involved, from St. George to Salt Lake City, are pointing fingers at one another as to how these charges — rare in Utah — even got filed.
What happened here? It’s unclear. But the woman’s defense lawyer is frustrated and worries about the effect such a flawed process might have on other victims considering whether to report a sexual assault.