Legal Question in Criminal Law in New York

My estranged wife filed a false police report in conjunction with obtaining an order of protection against me. As a result of the false police report, I was arrested, spent 28 hours in jail awaiting arraignment of the charges filed in the report, which were six misdemeanors and two violations. I had to spend $3,500 in legal fees for representation at three court hearings. In addition, the NYPD contacted my job, and spoke to the head of my agency, my chief of security and my immediate supervisor. I was embarrassed and humiliated at work as a result of this and my security clearance was in jeopardy. After the last court hearing, my estranged wife went to my mother's home to tell her she was sorry, she didnt mean to do this for falsely accusing me and wants to drop all the charges. Do I have any legal recourse against my estranged wife. Can I file a criminal complaint for filing false charges against me, can she be prosecuted for that? Can I file a civil suit against her for damages, etc.?


Asked on 3/16/10, 5:48 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
peter bark bark & karpf

You can file criminal charges and sue her for her actions but whether or not you will succeed is another story. You can be sure your wife will deny that she told your mother the charges were false. If your mother can get your wife to repeat what she told her and secretly record it you may have a chance. In New York one side can secretly record a personal or phone conversation.

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Answered on 3/21/10, 7:05 am


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