"I
"I HAD
"I HAD NO
"I HAD NO IDEA WHO ACCUSED OF ME OF THIS. I HAD NO IDEA WHY EVERYTHING
WAS HAPPENING, AND I WAS LOST.
"THAT'S WHAT I WAS SCARED OF
MOST. JUST GOING TO PRISON FOR
NO
REASON."
NO REASON." IMAGINE BEING ACCUSED OF
SOMETHING YOU DIDN'T DO --
FACING THE POSSIBLITY OF PRISON
TIME OR HAVING YOUR
LIFE OR CAREER RUINED.
THAT'S WHAT HAPPENED TO THIS
MAN...
CRISTOPHER PRECOPIA WAS ACCUSED
BY HIS EX OF BREAKING
INTO HER HOME IN TEMPLE... SHE
CLAIMED HE SLICED HER
WITH A BOX CUTTER... NOW POLICE
SAY HER STORY WASN'T
TRUE.
TRUE.
TRUE. ASK
TRUE. ASK POLICE AND PROSECUTORS --
AND THEY'LL TELL YOU ABOUT CASES WHEN THEY BELIEVE ONE
PERSON LIED TO GET
SOMEONE ELSE IN TROUBLE...
BUT THE KVUE DEFENDERS FOUND
THOSE OFFICIALS
RARELY CHARGE ACCUSERS FOR
MAKING A FALSE ALLEGATION.
TONY PLOHETSKI SHOWS US WHY
THESE CASES
ARE OFTEN COMPLEX AND HARD TO
PROVE.
PROVE.
PROVE. THIS IS DASH CAMERA VIDEO OF
TRAVIS COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPUTY MICHAEL
ANDERSON
APPROACHING A SUSPICIOUS WHITE
VAN PARKED
OUTSIDE A WOMAN'S HOME -- HIS
GUN UNHOLSTERED
AT HIS SIDE.
DEPUTY: "PUT YOUR HANDS UP, PUT
YOUR HANDS UP. YEAH. WHAT ARE
YOU DOING HERE?
DRIVER:
DRIVER: "I'M DELIVERING PACKAGES, WAITING ON MY DISPATCH."
BEHIND THE WHEEL -- 42- YEAR-OLD
KELVIN TANNER
-- AN AMAZON CONTRACTOR --
EXPLAINS HE HAS JUST
DROPPED OFF A SHIPMENT AND IS
WAITING FOR HIS NEXT
ASSIGNMENT. DEPUTY ANDERSON AND
TANNER THEN
EMBARK ON A TESTY, 10- MINUTE
EXCHANGE.
TANNER: "CAN I CALL MY
DISPATCH?"
DEPUTY: "YOU CAN CALL WHOEVER
YOU WANT BUT I NEED TO KNOW
WHO YOU ARE AND WHAT YOU'RE
DOING HERE."
DEPUTY: "WOULDN'T YOU BE
SUSPICIOUS IF SOMEBODY CAME
IN A VAN ON YOUR PROPERTY AND
JUST SAT HERE. DOES THAT NOT
SEEM THE LEAST BIT SUSPICIOUS TO
YOU AT ALL?"
THEIR ENCOUNTER ENDS WITH TANNER
DRIVING
DRIVING
AWAY.
AWAY. THE
AWAY. THE NEXT DAY -- TANNER FILED A COMPLAINT AGAINST DEPUTY
ANDERSON WITH INTERNAL AFFAIRS
AT THE TRAVIS COUNTY
SHERIFF'S OFFICE, ACCUSING THE
DEPUTY OF
MISCONDUCT.
I THINK ANY OFFICER WHO ACTED
THAT WAY -- SOMETHING
SHOULD
SHOULD BE
SHOULD BE DONE ABOUT IT. BUT IN HIS ONE-PAGE WRITTEN COMPLAINT -- TANNER
ALLEGES THINGS THAT DON'T MATCH
THE VIDEO. FOR INSTANCE -- HE
CLAIMS
CLAIMS ANDERSON POINTED HIS GUN AT HIM. THE VIDEO SHOWS THAT DIDN'T HAPPEN.
TANNER ALSO CLAIMS THE DEPUTY
TOLD HIM QUOTE -- "THAT'S NOT
GOING TO HELP YOU ANYWAY" --
WHEN HE ASKED
TO CALL HIS BOSS -- A STATEMENT
THE VIDEO SHOWS
DEPUTY ANDERSON DID NOT SAY.
SHERIFF'S INVESTIGATORS
CONCLUDED TANNER WAS
LYING -- AND CHARGED HIM WITH
MAKING A FALSE REPORT.
BUT WE FOUND LESS THAN A COUPLE
OF HUNDRED CASES
IN THE PAST THREE YEARS WHEN
TRAVIS COUNTY AND OTHER CENTRAL
TEXAS LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS
PURSUED THE CHARGE.
ACCORDING TO A KVUE DEFENDERS
ANALYSIS,
OFFICIALS IN TRAVIS, WILLIAMSON
AND HAYS COUNTIES HAVE BROUGHT
THE CHARGE 171 TIMES SINCE 2016
-- EVEN
THOUGH THEY AGREE THE NUMBER OF
TIMES SOMEONE
GAVE UNTRUTHFUL INFORMATION TO
THE POLICE IS LIKELY MUCH
HIGHER.
OF THE 171 CHARGES, PROSECUTORS
LATER DISMISSED 32 PERCENT, 29
PERCENT ARE PENDING AND 39
PERCENT RESULTED IN CONVICTIONS
OR A FORM OF
PROBATION.
WE STARTED LOOKING INTO THE
ISSUE OF FALSE
REPORTING AFTER WE TOLD YOU THE
STORY OF CRISTOPHER
PRECOPIA LAST FALL. TEMPLE
POLICE CHARGED HIM WITH
ASSAULTING A FORMER GIRLFRIEND
IN
IN
2017
2017 BY
2017 BY SLICING AN "X" INTO HER CHEST. TEN MONTHS PASSED BEFORE PROSECUTORS DROPPED THE
CHARGES WHEN
A SELFIE PROVED PRECOPIA WAS 70
MILES AWAY.
ONLY AFTER OUR STORY GOT
ATTENTION NATIONALLY DID
PROSECUTORS CHARGE FAITH COX
WITH MAKING A FALSE
REPORT.
BUT MOST OF THE TIME --
OFFICIALS SAY THESE CASES
ARE NOT THAT SIMPLE OR
CLEAR-CUT.
"YOU HAVE TO SHOW THAT THE
PERSON DIDN'T PERCEIVE A
SITUATION WRONG."
WILLIAMSON COUNTY ATTORNEY DEE
HOBBS, WHO
REVIEWS FALSE REPORT CASES FOR
HIS OFFICE, SAYS
PROSECUTORS MUST CAREFULLY WEIGH
GOING
FORWARD WITH A FALSE REPORT
CHARGE.
"THE WHOLE POINT OF THE LAW IS
TO PROTECT PEOPLE FROM BEING
FALSELY ACCUSED BUT AT THE SAME
TIME YOU MUST PROTECT THE
CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT AND
ENCOURAGE FOLKS TO REACH OUT TO
LAW ENFORCEMENT WITHOUT FEAR OF
BEING ARRESTED IF
THEY ARE WRONG."
SHERIFF'S OFFICIALS SAY THEY
CHARGED TANNER
BECAUSE THEY BELIEVE HE INTENDED
TO LIE.
"JUST AS WE TAKE AN
INVESTIGATION INTO A COMPLAINT
AGAINST US VERY
VERY SERIOUSLY, WHEN WE HAVE THE
OPPORTUNITY TO INVESTIGATE AND DISCOVER THAT THE PERSON WHO MADE THAT COMPLAINT WAS
DISHONEST, AND EGERGRIOUSLY SO,
WE TAKE THAT VERY SERIOUSLY
AS WELL."
BUT TANNER AND HIS ATTORNEY SAY
IT'S NOT THAT SIMPLE --
THAT TANNER REPORTED THE
INCIDENT EXACTLY HOW
HE REMEMBERED IT.
I WAS GOING OFF OF EVERYTHING
THAT WAS GOING THROUGH MY HEAD.
HE SAYS HE DIDN'T INTEND
TO MAKE A FALSE STATEMENT, BUT
THAT BECAUSE
OF THE STRESS OF THE ENCOUNTER,
MAY HAVE
PERCEIVED THE DEPUTY'S ACTIONS
DIFFERENT THAN
REALITY.
PROSECUTORS EVENTUALLY DROPPED
THE CHARGE -- AND THE DEPUTY
WASN'T DISCIPLINED.
TANNER'S LAWYER ALSO POINTS OUT
A BIG PROBLEM
WITH THE ACTIONS OF SHERIFF'S
INVESTIGATORS
AND PROSECUTORS IN THE FIRST
PLACE. UNDER
THE LAW -- A PERSON CAN ONLY BE
CHARGED WITH
MAKING A FALSE REPORT IN A
CRIMINAL CASE -- NOT IN AN
INTERNAL AFFAIRS COMPLAINT --
LIKE TANNER'S. SEVERAL MONTHS
LATER -- TANNER STANDS BY HIS
DECISION TO FILE A COMPLAINT --
EVEN THOUGH IT LED TO HIS
ARREST.
HE SAYS HE BELIEVES DEPUTY
ANDERSON WAS TOO AGGRESSIVE --
AND THAT HIS BOSSES AND THE
PUBLIC SHOULD KNOW WHAT HAPPENED
THAT DAY.
SOME PEOPLE JUST HAVE TO STAND
UP, STAND UP AND DO SOMETHING
ABOUT
ABOUT THOSE KINDS OF OFFICERS. WE ASKED TO TALK TO DEPUTY ANDERSON ABOUT BEING
ACCUSED. HE DECLINED.
FILING A FALSE REPORT IS A CLASS
B MISDEMEANOR
AND CAN LEAD TO A YEAR IN JAIL
AND A 4-THOUSAND
DOLLAR FINE. OF THE CASES WE
FOUND THAT LED TO
CONVICTIONS, MOST DEFENDANTS DID
AT LEAST
SOME JAIL TIME, WITH A RANGE
FROM A COUPLE OF DAYS TO A
COUPLE OF MONTHS.
TONY PLOHETSKI, KVUE NEWS.
IF YOU HAVE SOMETHING YOU'D LIKE
THE KVUE DEFENDERS TO INVESTIGATE --
EMAIL US AT DEFENDERS AT
KVUE DOT COM OR CALL US AT THE
NUMBER ON YOUR SCREEN.