FAYETTEVILLE (KFSM) — A University of Arkansas student is suing a former student for a false accusation that led to her arrest and spending a night in the county jail, according to a lawsuit filed in Washington County Circuit Court.
Emily Hunt, 22, was arrested in May 2018 after Nicole Nottage falsely reported to UA police that Hunt threatened her online. Hunt said she was strip-searched and spent 24 hours in jail until posting a $5,000 bond.
According to the lawsuit, Hunt reported Nottage, 24, to UAPD in December 2017 for theft, but investigators failed to prove her guilt.
When Nottage learned Hunt implicated her, she responded in May 2018 by creating a fake Facebook account under Hunt’s name, according to the lawsuit.
Nottage used that fake account to send death threats and racial slurs to her own Facebook, then reported it to UAPD, which arrested Hunt for terroristic threatening, according to a probable case affidavit.
Hunt said it took her a week, but she managed to prove her innocence. UAPD subsequently arrested Nottage for filing a false police report — a Class D felony.
Hunt declined to comment, but claimed in the lawsuit that Nottage tried to ruin her life and caused a lifetime “substantial and crippling damages and emotional distress.”
She’s seeking a judgement of more than $75,000 as well as court costs and attorney’s fees.
Nottage is free on a $2,500 bond and now lives in the Bahamas, according to the lawsuit.
She has pleaded not guilty to the charge and is due back in court April 29.
In Arkansas, Class D felonies are punishable by up to six years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
