Baton Rouge Police are currently investigating a reported kidnapping and rape that took place near Nicholson and Brightside. Earlier this week, the female victim reported that a white male approached her in the parking lot of an apartment complex, put an object to her back which she believed was a gun and took her to a nearby parked van.
The victims reported that she was made to get into the van, and that she was taken to a nearby wooded area and raped, after which the male drover her back to the apartment complex dropped her off. Sources are circulating an image of the man, who is described as a 30-35 year old of average height with bushy hair and a brown mustache, and are requesting information from the public.
The case is still under investigation, so little can be said at this point concerning it. It is worth mentioning, though, that rape investigation is not an infallible process. This is obvious from the number of wrongful rape convictions seen across the nation.
Anybody charged with a crime as serious as rape deserves a strong criminal defense. Rape charges have very serious consequences, particularly if the charges concern aggravated rape, which adds the element of wounding, maiming, disfiguring or endangering the life of the alleged victim.
Criminal defense, it is important to remember, is not necessarily premised on the goal of obtaining dismissal or acquittal on all charges. A good defense attorney will do nothing less than ensure the defendant receives all the protections due to them through the criminal process and that the best possible outcome is achieved in their case.
Source: Baton Rouge Today, “Baton Rouge Police Investigate Tape/Kidnapping Near Brightside,” October 2, 2012.