I want to address the malicious, inaccurate and libelous items about me that remain on the Internet, three years after I was falsely arrested. There is an important fact that has never been mentioned. That night, I called 911 for help. Even so, the officer, who recognized me immediately as a local news reporter, chose to ignore the signs as to why I called 911 for help.

The officer was grossly irresponsible for falsely writing in his police report that I "sprayed a bleach product" in my boyfriend's face. This act never happened.

An unidentified reporter at the St. Petersburg Times repeated the bleach allegation in an article that he/she wrote based only on the arrest report. No one from the St. Petersburg Times ever bothered to verify the accuracy of the police report.

As a journalist, I know how important it is to check out both sides of a story. Otherwise, the public can be misled into thinking a crime occurred when one did not. Innocent people can have their good names ruined.

The St. Petersburg Times was ordered to print a corrected and accurate version of this alleged incident. Although I am not completely pleased by the Times' revision, at least the public can see that the original article was both inaccurate and misleading.

"The solution was not bleach, Bartlett said."

                                Bruce Bartlett, Chief Asst. Prosecutor
                                St. Petersburg Times, 3/3/05

According to the Pinellas County Prosecutor's Office, I never sprayed bleach or anything else in my boyfriend's face.

I wish to thank the Prosecutor's Office for its professionalism and fair treatment in dismissing the matter immediately. I also want to thank my family, friends and fans for their understanding and support.

With best wishes,
Roxanne