Lies and Punishment

I know I've been away from here for a while, but I've been busy living a life and working a pretty good job. Funny things happen when no one cares about your past, refuses to investigate it because it has no bearing on your employment, and you don't have to worry about it except for the occasional registration visit with the local law enforcement.

Anyway, this happened to float across my news feed today:

Woman Who Lied to Police About 3 Black Men Raping and Kidnapping Her Faces Zero Years in Prison

Now, I'm no legal scholar, but it seems to me that if you accuse someone of kidnapping and rape, and it turns out that you might have lied just a little bit about the kidnapping and rape part, you should face some sort of consequences. I mean, this sort of accusation had the potential to alter the lives of 3 people in very serious ways, not to mention the possibility of vigilante justice being perpetrated upon any number of innocent black men in the community.

Rape is a serious accusation. It should be investigated seriously, and punished seriously. Similarly, when there is clear evidence and an admission of falsehood, that should also be punished seriously. Alas, this is not to be the case here.

There can be no justice when a mere accusation is weaponized in favor of a presumed victim, with no repercussions for falsehood that wastes police time and resources and puts lives in danger.