Kate Woodhead of Surrey, England, accused her boyfriend of drugging and raping her after he tried to end their 18-month relationship. Paul Joseph, the boyfriend, said he left his house to go to work at his job as an IT consultant one day, and the next thing he knew he was arrested and his entire life went up in smoke.
For me, it is as if someone’s house burned down and everything they owned was in it. That is effectively what happened to me.
[...]
I walked out of the house wearing my suit when I was arrested and I never saw anything again apart from one briefcase and a work laptop.
Fortunately for Mr. Joseph, the police were suspicious of the story, but by the time he was cleared the damage had been done. While he was defending himself, Ms. Woodhead stole his most valuable possessions and transferred ownership of his cars. Joseph lost his job, was put through enormous stress, and suffered under the knowledge that people suspected him of being a rapist.
In a profound understatement, Joseph said “the period after the arrest was difficult mentally.” Now, he is trying to rebuild his shattered life and leave the terrible experience behind, saying “It is done – it is over and I am trying to work as hard as I can to get back to where I was.”
In the meanwhile, the woman who maliciously wrecked his life and stole everything she could is facing only three years in prison, of which she will probably serve less than half.
Perhaps Ms. Woodhead was encouraged by the recent political drive to reduce sentences for female offenders who go after their loved ones. Her mild sentence certainly reflects a great disregard for Mr. Joseph’s life and freedom.
