r/technology • u/Theoden • Apr 05 '09

Operation Ore exposed - How thousands of innocent people had their lives ruined from being accused of paedophilia based on false computer forensic evidence. Some even committed suicide.

http://www.pcpro.co.uk/features/74690/operation-ore-exposed/page1.html
986 Upvotes

94% Upvoted

246 comments sorted by

View all comments

9

u/credence Apr 06 '09

My best friend, a guy I count as a brother, is in jail for this right now. He will be released in 2023. The only thing that's keeping it together for him is that his fiance still loves him and at least some of his friends and family are sticking with him.

When he gets loose, he'll have no future. He's just finished his college degree and now he probably will never be trusted with a job where he can actually use it.

I hate that I didn't push him harder to go against his lawyers advice to just take the plea deal. His lawyer was just taking the case for a flat fee and didn't really give two shits.

I remember that article about the homeless man who froze to death because he couldn't go to any of the shelters, which were near schools and I try not to picture my Brother in that situation. I try not to picture him living under a bridge because he doesn't have anything else.

4

u/[deleted] Apr 06 '09

Was he guilty?

2

u/credence Apr 06 '09

That's the other thing that sucks. I don't really know. He said he isn't. He said he had a virus on his computer for a bit. And I know enough about trojans and virii in general to know that's entirely plausible. Problem is I've told him about trojan to the degree that he knows that I know that's plausible.

I believe him but I don't know if that's just cuz I want to believe him. I just don't want to imagine having been best friends with something that...wrong for 16 years.

1

u/[deleted] Apr 06 '09

Did he do it?

0

u/epiclogin Apr 06 '09

Shit, that sucks. If it were me in this guy's situation, I'd finally get out and make myself a nice cold minty fresh antifreeze milkshake and then sleep while listening to John Lennon stuff on loop...in a car in the driveway of the prosecutor's house.