The sister of a 17-year-old who died after being accused — and later cleared — of rape described in a Netflix documentary how her brother took his own life in the very spot where they had played as children.
Jay Cheshire, a sixth-form student from Southampton who was studying English Literature, Film Studies and Geography, was found hanging from a tree and died in hospital two days later on July 5, 2015, the documentary I Am Not a Rapist recounts. The young woman who made the allegation withdrew her complaint about two weeks after it was made.
In the film, Cheshire’s older sister, Camellia, describes the effect the police investigation and the allegation had on her brother. She said he returned home the night of the incident “distraught” after an encounter with a girl in the spring of 2015, and that his demeanour changed markedly while the complaint was being investigated.
Camellia said she and Jay phoned the girl after the encounter and that the girl’s mother told them she had reported Jay to police. The teenager later rang the police himself to seek information and agreed to attend voluntary questioning. A duty solicitor advised him not to answer questions, the family says, but Camellia told the documentary the police officer’s direct line of questioning made Jay want to speak. She recalled him answering “no comment” repeatedly while visibly shaken.
Jay was released while inquiries continued and two weeks later was informed the complainant had withdrawn the allegation and that there would be no further action. By then, his family says, he had “spiralled completely.” Camellia read from a letter Jay wrote the day before his death addressed “to the ones I love,” in which he wrote, “Mum, you have been the greatest.”
The family said Jay was found by a dog walker at the tree where he and his sister had played as children; he had bought an energy drink and a bag of crisps beforehand. Emergency services initially revived him but he suffered brain damage and died in hospital two days later.
At an inquest at Winchester Coroners’ Court, senior coroner Grahame Short recorded a verdict of suicide and said Jay had struggled to cope with the false accusations and the stress of the investigation. The court heard Jay had a history of low moods, had been prescribed antidepressants and had been under psychiatric care since age 13. He had been due to receive cognitive behavioural therapy, and clinicians had recently assessed his state of mind as having improved before the police inquiry began.
The documentary I Am Not a Rapist tells the stories of three young men whose lives were affected after being accused of sexual assault and examines the personal and social consequences of such allegations. Cheshire’s family members, including his mother, appear in the film recounting the days and weeks after the inquiry and the impact of his death.
The film includes testimony from Camellia describing how she felt the police treated her brother during questioning and how the family were informed of his death. The inquest record and family statements published at the time state the complainant withdrew the allegation more than a week before Jay’s death.
Cheshire had hoped to study history at university after completing his A-levels. The account of his death and the subsequent inquest have been cited in public discussion about how allegations are handled, the support available to those subject to investigations, and the wider effects on mental health. The coroner’s finding emphasized the role of the false accusation and investigation in his deterioration, while medical records referenced at the inquest documented an existing history of mental health treatment.