False rape case set for trial

PORT CLINTON — A judge set a trial date for Dec. 14 in what appears to be a first-of-its kind felony prosecution in Ohio of a woman charged for allegedly lying about being raped. Visiting Judge Janet Burnside also ruled on several pending motions after a closed-door conference Oct. 28 with a special prosecutor who works for Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost and the defense attorney representing Arica Waters, 29, of Lyndhurst, Sarah Anjum. Waters Waters accused a man of raping her after a pool party in July 2020 at his summer home at Put-in-Bay. An investigation determined that's not what happened, however, and Yost contends she's lying about being raped. But two other women also accused the same man of raping each of them, in separate incidents, in 2008. All three alleged sexual assaults involved excessive alcohol consumption, according to sheriffs' reports. It's not clear if the one-day trial Burnside scheduled for next month will provide enough time for all potential witnesses to testify. Anjum wants to subpoena the two other women who filed rape complaints and question each of them about common threads in what they told police happened. Anjum also wants to cross-examine the man about the other two rape complaints, neither of which led to charges against him. The man all three women accused is the victim and a lead witness against Waters. Ohio AG Chief Prosecutor Carol O'Brien has ignored questions about the message being sent by prosecuting a woman for lying about being raped. Waters, who is Black, is the only person charged with falsification. Yost has refused to say why he's pursuing a case against her, and not the other women, who are white. If she's convicted, Waters could be sentenced to 18 months in prison. She denies she lied about being raped and has pleaded not guilty to the falsification charge. Yost also refuses to say what message he's intending to send the public by prosecuting Waters. Advocates fear the message being telegraphed to victims is if you report sexual violence and a prosecutor does not believe you you could be sent to prison. Yost does not believe any of the women were raped, according to court filings in which he attempted to discredit all three women. Yost asked Burnside to exclude the prior rape reports from the trial, to prohibit Anjum from asking the witness about the prior rape complaints against him during cross-examination and to bar the women from testifying at Waters' trial. Yost Register photo In a court filing, Yost suggested one woman was a "willing participant" in a threesome with the man, not a rape victim, and the other woman "dreamed" she was raped by the man. Advocates say those are common tactics men use — saying a woman "wanted it" or that she is unstable — to intimidate women and keep them from pursuing charges for sexual assaults. A third tactic is to threaten to have them charged with lying, advocates say, which Yost also did by getting Waters indicted on a felony falsification charge in October 2020. Yost refuses to talk with the other women and his chief counsel, associate attorney general Carol O'Brien, also has refused to answer questions about why the office of attorney general wants to silence the women. There also was concern raised about news coverage during the Oct. 28 closed-door hearing Burnside conducted. "Discussion of pretrial publicity was had," Burnside wrote in an order issued Tuesday. "The court suggested short and highly specific juror questioning on this and related issues." It's unknown what was said during the discussion. Burnside barred a reporter from attending the pretrial hearing.