SAN FRANCISCO – Attorneys for a Northern California police department that dismissed a woman's kidnapping as a hoax say investigators were skeptical because she refused an offer to reunite with her family.
The lawyers say Vallejo police also found the account of Denise Huskins' disappearance given by her boyfriend implausible. Among other things, Aaron Quinn told officers that intruders in scuba gear drugged the couple and checked their blood pressure.
Federal prosecutors have since charged a disbarred Harvard University-trained attorney, Matthew Muller, with Huskins' kidnapping. The city has apologized to Huskins and Quinn, who have sued Vallejo and two police officers for defamation.
Attorneys for the city and the officers explained why police initially dismissed the kidnapping as a hoax in court documents filed last month seeking to dismiss parts of the lawsuit.
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