AT 2 AM

At 2 a.m., police rang the doorbell and arrested someone for a sexual assault they say they did not commit, and by the time they got home, their two cats were dead. About a little over a year ago, the poster answered the door in the middle of the night and was taken into custody. They reached jail around 3 a.m. and spent the entire day in the waiting area until 10 p.m., with no food. After that, they were moved into a cell and held there for two more days. It took another twist before they even saw a judge. When they finally did, the judge told them the arrest was for sexually assaulting someone. That day, they also met with a social worker, who helped them call a bail bondsman. Even after that was arranged, the release still dragged on for another day and a half. In total, they spent five days in jail. The poster says the jail had a rule about moving inmates only in certain minimum group sizes. Because crime was so slow, they say those group sizes were not being met, and they sat waiting longer than expected. When they finally got back home, they found their two cats dead. They believe the animals died of dehydration. The arrest had already become public, and they say their job was gone too. The criminal defense lawyer they hired started pulling apart the accusation. According to the poster, the accuser had given three completely different versions of events: one when she called 911, another the next day to an investigator, and then a third version a few days later when she "remembered" more details about the poster. The descriptions of the person and the car, the poster says, were all different each time. The case fell apart on the strength of an alibi. The poster says security cameras showed them and their car at home while the crime was happening. The charges were dropped. But the arrest did not disappear with the case. It has now been 16 months, and the poster says they still have not been able to get a job because news stories about the arrest keep showing up near the top of Google results. They paid a lawyer to get the arrest record cleaned up and believe they have, or soon will have, a clean background check. When they asked about suing, they say their lawyer told them there was no one to sue. The poster summed it up bluntly: "I was arrested for a crime I didn't do based on false evidence." They added, "I found my two cats dead," and, "It's been 16 months and I still haven't been able to get a job."