Defending the Falsely Accused

If you have been falsely accused of child abuse, we can help. My name is Allen Cowling. With more than 40 years experience as a private investigator, I have devoted my practice solely to defending the falsely accused since 1989, for clients, worldwide.

Over the years, we have developed a system that has proven very effective in defending these type cases. When retained, I make an initial trip to the client's location. The number of days scheduled depends entirely on the amount of material to be examined and analyzed, such as pretrial discovery, client files, reports and transcripts. When I first arrive, I go through all material, develop a preliminary defense strategy and then meet with the client.

On occasion, I have a request from potential clients, asking if they can send their files to my office, or if it would be less expensive for them if they met me at my office. Neither is in the client's best interest. When accepting any case, it is vital that I make an initial visit to the client's location for several reasons:

It may be necessary for me to research court files that the client may not know exist and/or talk to other persons besides the client, possibly family members.
I want to see my client in their home and in their natural surroundings. One of the most important aspects of building a defense for the falsely accused is for me to know and understand my client's personality. You build your defense to the personality, you do not attempt to do the opposite and mold a personality to a defense. If the falsely accused is criminally charged and forced to defend the allegations at trial, regardless of the number of witnesses and/or experts they may call to testify, much of the case will actually come down to the credibility of the accused against that of the accuser. Obviously, for that reason, my client must testify. Regardless of what a client may be told, if a child accuser tells a jury that you molested them, all the 5th amendment rights not to testify will amount to nothing more than a conviction. These cases are different than any other criminal case, especially because of the overall emotion involved. Simply put, this is an image game. If a jury likes, trusts and believes in you, they will acquit. If not, they will convict, so courtroom demeanor is a vital part of the defense and far more involved than simply being told, "Just tell the truth."
While a client may believe that there would be a cost savings by visiting me, that is untrue. When I am in Mississippi, I charge $175.00 per hour for every hour worked. When I am working out-of-state, the daily hours are capped at 8 so, while it is not unusual for me to average 15 to 18 hour days, the client is only paying for 8.
Also in that I average only 3 to 4 days back in Mississippi, it is hard for me to schedule an office visit and, since I rarely see my family, I usually do not conduct business during that time unless it is an extreme emergency.

As I stated previously, you do not attempt to develop a defense strategy and then mold a client's personality around it. In that manner, you are actually attempting to change the client, possibly into something they are not and, in doing so, they will relate very poorly to any jury. Unfortunately, this happens frequently when "experts" attempting to defend the falsely accused, never meet, know or understand them. You cannot determine a personality based on a telephone conversation or through an email, but only by getting to know the person. In my work, my clients are real people with individual personal problems. They are not just cold, impersonal file numbers.

My website details exactly what I do, how I do it and the approximate cost. Several times, I have been asked, "Can't someone copy the information from your pages and set themselves up as an expert since your information is so detailed?" Yes, someone could easily attempt that, but usually, failure would quickly follow. The fact is, I do detail exactly what I do, but what I cannot do is detail how a strategy is actually built around a client's personality because every client, every personality and every case is different. As I said, the defense strategy must be structured around the client's personality and it is very doubtful that someone, attempting to copy material and set themselves up as an expert, would succeed because of that. It has taken me many years and many cases to develop my methods and the knowledge that I have gained in dealing with people cannot be copied.

Most people, when falsely accused, are usually very depressed and, more often than not, paranoid to some degree. Depression can quickly lead to panic and panic can lead straight to a conviction for the innocent. I am contacted almost daily with, "But all they have is the word of a child." That is all they need. A child, telling a jury of 12 strangers that an adult sexually molested them is a powerful tool in the hands of the State. Never make the mistake of underestimating that power.

The best possible advise that I can give anyone who has been falsely accused of child abuse is, take a deep breath, back up and begin educating yourself. If you know what is going on, if you know what is ahead and if you know how to personally deal with it, your chances of survival improve greatly.

I have written a great deal of material and provided it on my website. I would strongly recommend that you go to any page and click on "Sitemap." That will detail each and every page available so you can concentrate on the issues that may be of concern to you. While, some people provide a small amount of information and you get the balance when you retain them, that is not the case here. I mainly developed the website to assist those who are not in a position of affording professional help, and there are many. I am simply attempting to give them at least an even chance to defend themselves.

If, after reading the material that I have provided, you would like to discuss your case, we would be more than happy to talk with you. In that I am rarely in the office, you can easily reach my office manager who can discuss your case and/or arrange a time that would be convenient for us to talk.

There are various links at the bottom of this page, each beneficial, and I sincerely wish you the very best in whatever avenue you chose to follow. One final comment; In the past, we have been contacted and told we were being considered along with someone else and then asked our opinion of the other person. Obviously, they were seeking some form of negative comment. While others may trash competition, we do not, so please do not ask. If you retain someone, retain them because of their ability to work with you, regardless of who they are.