23 Dec – Shortly after Yvonne Andrews’ ex-boyfriend assaulted her in 2011, he falsely accused her of “infecting” two men with HIV, neither of whom she had ever met. Within days, Andrews found herself in a Florida prison cell facing a sixty-year sentence. Despite numerous beatings and openly describing how he planned to kill her, her ex used the laws to become make her the criminal. He was never charged.
by CELIA FARBER
The blond, soft-spoken mother of two had languished in prison for several months when OMSJ contacted her attorney and prepared her defense.
Reached at home just weeks after her release, Andrews told The Truth Barrier, “Mr. Coleman saw me while I was in prison, and explained everything. Then, after my attorney and I understood and we all became a team, they went to work. They were amazingly fast and effective. OMSJ broke down the prosecution in no time at all and educated them about the scientific side. These people wanted to put me away for sixty years. My kids would have had no mom. Instead I was out after nine months.”
“We had a similar case in 2011,” said Baker, “when a rapist accused his victim of HIV exposure. After questioning the victim’s doctor in a pretrial hearing, prosecutors withdrew all charges against our client who, if convicted, could have received a 30-year prison sentence.”
Andrews’ voice breaks when she mentions Clark Baker:
“Mr. Baker to me is heaven sent. He is my angel. I will be in debt to that man for the rest of my life. I can’t even express the feelings I felt when they came and told me. Words cannot express it.
“I want my story to be told because I want everybody to know the truth. I had no idea you could destroy somebody’s life just like that, just accusations, no proof, just hearsay. No idea. I was in prison with a girl who was part of a drug deal gone bad… she ran over a man and crushed his skull. She was in for murder. Her maximum was 15 years. My maximum was 60 years.”
She draws a deep sigh.
“Yes, m’aam.”
She continues:
I sat down to write Mr. Baker a thank you letter, but after a week of mulling it over, I still could not find the words. I have never had anybody help me the way Mr. Baker has helped me and my attorney here.
The team at OMSJ, those people are working for a higher power. For all the people who are innocent and don’t deserve any of this, but nobody hears them. Nobody wants to hear it. One day it will all come out. The truth will come out.
(See Celia Farber’s full report at The Truth Barrier.) See also Patient Tells Story, One Mother’s HIV Nightmare and My Year an an HIV Patient.
UPDATE 10 APRIL 2013: David Crowe and Elizabeth Ely recently recorded this interview with Ms. Andrews about her ordeal on How Positive Are You?
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Tags: Citrus County, Florida, HIV Innocence Group, Yvonne Nicole Andrews