42: From Victim to Accused: The Veronika Rodriguez Story part five - Pier Hess Graf

In Episode five, host Mel Barrett, goes on a deep dive into the prosecutor in Veronika's case: Pier Hess GrafPier Hess Graf didn’t just prosecute the alleged victim in this case, she went hard at Veronika Rodriguez, asking for up to 16 years in prison for reporting her own sexual assault. I wonder where that kind of resentment and unrelenting spite comes from. Did getting accused of sleeping her way into the DA’s office create internalized misogyny in Pier Hess Graf? Why has she never brought a sexual assault case before Veronika’s? Is her ambition to fit into the boy’s club so great that she hates women because of it?Pier Hess Graf will be remembered as a DA who inspired fierce loyalty and fierce opposition. You can respect her relentlessness in court and still demand she follow ethics. You can back law enforcement and still expect independence. You can acknowledge false accusations exist–though in my opinion, not in Veronika’s case–and you can still refuse to build a system that punishes reporting itself.Those aren’t contradictions. They’re the bare minimum for a justice system worthy of the word justice.Please share. Veronika's sentencing happens on August 20, 2025 so sharing this episode helps get the word out about what really happened in her case.Back story: Veronika Rodriguez reported her rape to police. She even had evidence to prove it happened. Still police didn't believe her and turned her from victim, to accused, to convicted.Mel hadn’t planned to make a several episode push about one subject in between seasons, but this story has fallen into her lap and she can’t look away. Veronika has been tried and convicted of making a false report of sexual assault and felony wiretapping in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvaia. She is awaiting sentencing on August 20, 2025.Join the club for AD FREE, exclusive behind-the-scenes, and bonus content of The In Between Podcast: https://patreon.com/TheInBetweenPodcastwithMelBarrett?utm_medium=unknown&utm_source=join_link&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator&utm_content=copyLinkFollow The In Between Podcast at:IG: @TheInBetweenPodOfficialFB: @TheInBetweenPodBluesky: @inbetweenpodWeb: inbetweenpod.com