Falsely Accused of Obtaining Painkillers

When Bonnie Wilson was in college, she was accused by a police officer of obtaining painkillers using forged prescriptions. The evidence against her consisted of a perpetrator who used a fake name that was similar to Wilson's middle name and a prescription for painkillers obtained in her brother's name.

In reality, Wilson had committed no crime, as she was 30 miles away at college when it took place. Her brother had a legitimate prescription, and she bore no resemblance to the actual perpetrator, who had blonde hair and a piercing while Wilson was a brunette with no piercings.

Regardless of this easily checkable information, Wilson was arrested and spent nine months and thousands of dollars going through the justice system to clear her name. Had her family not been able to afford lawyers, she may have had to take a plea deal for a crime she didn't commit, a not uncommon occurrence in the criminal justice system.

Plight of the Accused

In Her Own Words

Wilson wrote of her experience because the judge in her case, whom Wilson said had admonished her because her attorney asked for a continuance, has recently come out to discuss the hardships faced by falsely accused people.

"I am glad to see that Judge [Marcia] Morey finally understands that damages to a person happen with an arrest," Wilson wrote. "Although the system eventually 'worked,' nine months of my life were consumed with stress and anxiety from fighting false charges instead of enjoying my senior year in college."

Wilson wrote that despite her official record being expunged, no newspaper and no public official reported her innocence. Websites selling "background information" can still report her arrest. She wrote that she will forever be viewed suspiciously because, since she was arrested, she "must have done something."

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