Yost ignores woman

PORT CLINTON — Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost won't say whether he'll respond to a woman who asked for his help in getting her alleged rapist prosecuted, a man Yost promoted as his chief witness last year in a felony trial of another woman he wrongly alleged lied about being raped. Yost has never explained why he sought felony charges against the other woman or how he could have misread that situation so poorly that a judge dismissed the charges after a two-day trial in December. The judge determined the woman never claimed she was raped, only that an unwanted sexual encounter occurred after a drinking party. Yost The judge also suggested expenses for the investigation may have been padded to increase the severity of the charge filed against the woman. It also was learned prior to the trial that two other women filed complaints against the same man, Yost's chief witness. In a court motion, assistant attorney general Drew Wood, who works for Yost and was the special prosecutor, filed a motion seeking to bar the other women from testifying. In a court filing, Wood wrote that the other women who filed rape complaints might receive justice someday, but it was not clear if the Attorney General's office would ever pursue it on their behalf. The woman who wrote to Yost referred to that court filing. Special prosecutor "Drew Wood wrote that the other women who filed rape claims may get justice someday. I am one of the 'other victims.' I am asking you now, when is it my day?" she wrote. She suggested the prosecutions unit in Yost's office spent thousands of hours and an enormous amount of money and resources trying to convict a woman of lying about being raped and asked if there would be a similar effort on her behalf. "Will you utilize the same amount of time and money seeking justice for me as you did my attacker?" she asked Yost. She called the false rape trial a "debacle" and accused Yost of "trying to convict an innocent woman." "I ask you again, when is my day?" she wrote. No answers Yost has steadfastly refused to answer any questions for months about why he pursued the false rape case before it commenced and since the charges were dismissed. Before trial, he said it would be inappropriate since the case was pending. Since then, however, after the trial finished, he's offered no response of any kind. Advocates contend Yost's decision to prosecute a woman for making a false report will have a chilling effect on victims of sexual assault, who likely will be even more reluctant to come forward fearing that if a prosecutor doesn't believe them they could get prosecuted. Wood also implied in a court filing that the woman who wrote Yost last week merely "dreamed" she was raped, which advocates say is akin to saying she could not be believed. A common tactic used by men who assault women is to suggest they are "too crazy to be believed," according to advocates. In the same court filing, Wood alleged the other woman who filed a rape complaint against the same man was a "willing participant." Advocates say saying that a woman "wanted it" is another common tactic men who sexually assault women use to intimidate them and keep them from filing complaints. Yost won't address any of those concerns, and Wood also has declined comment. Carol O'Brien, Yost's chief prosecutor who manages the prosecutions unit at the Ohio Attorney General's Office, also has ignored concerns about how the false rape case was handled, and about how Yost's office treats the other women who filed complaints. It's unclear what kind of training Wood, O'Brien and Yost have when it comes to cases involving violence against women.