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False accusations result in death of accused. Accuser still free to ruin more lives.


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2019 Sep 8, 4:24pm   337 views  2 comments

by Patrick   ➕follow (55)   💰tip   ignore  

https://www.oregonlive.com/news/2019/09/target-employee-tanked-innocent-mans-reputation-with-false-story-of-seeing-naked-girls-on-his-iphone-1m-lawsuit-says.html

A $1 million lawsuit filed against Target says an innocent man’s life was turned upside down after an employee at the store near Washington Square made up a story of seeing photos of naked and bound children on the customer’s cellphone.

The employee made a report to Tigard police and the FBI, prompting a monthslong investigation into 43-year-old Jeffrey Buckmeyer, according to the lawsuit filed last week in Multnomah County Circuit Court.

Officers from both agencies showed up at Buckmeyer’s Tigard apartment last summer, searched his apartment, seized his computers and cellphone, handcuffed him and interrogated him in the back of a police car in full view of his neighbors, according to the suit and a lawyer associated with the case.

The accusations against Buckmeyer could have sent him to prison for decades.

But more than four months later, the FBI returned the electronic devices after failing to find any child pornography or proof that Buckmeyer abused children while creating pornography, said Graham Fisher, a criminal defense lawyer who Buckmeyer hired to represent him.

“Not a shred,” Fisher said.

Buckmeyer died several months later in April after suffering a heart attack, according to the lawsuit. ...

Fisher, Buckmeyer’s criminal defense attorney, said Buckmeyer told FBI agents he didn't have any child pornography and that the Target employee was 100% wrong. But the investigation continued.

Ultimately, this past January after 120 days of court-granted permission to hold Buckmeyer’s seized devices were up, the FBI returned Buckmeyer’s two laptops and phone, saying it was dropping the case, Fisher said.

Buckmeyer wasn’t charged.

Fisher said it’s rare for the FBI to go as far as it did based solely on the word of a store employee and find absolutely no child pornography.

The lawsuit and the attorneys associated with the case said they don’t know why the employee said what he did. But the suit claims the employee “intended to inflict severe emotional distress” on Buckmeyer with his “intentional, outrageous and extreme decision to falsely accuse” Buckmeyer.


Not a shred of evidence, and the man died from the stress of the false accusations.

Comments 1 - 2 of 2        Search these comments

1   HeadSet   2019 Sep 8, 6:34pm  

They should have been able to search the computers and phone in a single day. And when nothing was found, the accuser could face charges of slander.
2   Patrick   2019 Sep 8, 8:38pm  

Yes, but worse than slander. In this case it should be manslaughter at least.

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