Gainesville woman charged with rape after allegedly buying drinks for victim and manipulating him into returning to her apartment

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Eryn Michelle Lane, 25, was arrested yesterday and charged with sexual assault after allegedly buying drinks for a man and manipulating him into returning to her apartment.

The victim told an Alachua County Sheriff’s Detective that he was friends with Lane at the time of the incident, and he was aware that Lane was interested in a romantic and sexual relationship with him, but he had made it clear that he was not attracted to her and had no intention of being romantic with her.

In early January, a group went out drinking, including Lane and the victim, and the victim said Lane picked him up in her car; at the bar, he said, Lane bought him shots and drinks, and at one point, he reminded her that he was not interested in her and she reassured him that nothing would happen between them.

The victim said that when the group left the bar, Lane refused to let their designated driver drive her car unless the victim agreed to come to her apartment; the victim said she threatened to drive drunk and crash the car if he did not agree, and he gave in after an argument that lasted about 30 minutes. He said he continued to drink at her apartment and then woke up next to Lane in her bed. He said Lane asked him if he wanted to go “round two,” and he demanded that she take him home.

Several witnesses corroborated the victim’s account of the evening, and one friend and one ex-boyfriend reportedly said that Lane is a “pathological liar.”

Post Miranda, Lane reportedly confirmed that she had intercourse with the victim but said he initiated it; she said she told him he was too drunk, but he insisted, which reportedly contradicted her statements to other friends immediately after the incident. She initially denied buying drinks for the victim but later changed her answer when confronted with statements from other witnesses. She said she wanted the victim to come back to her apartment for his safety and that everyone involved was “conspiring against her and this is why her statement is different than everyone else’s.”

The detective determined there was probable cause that Lane and the victim had intercourse without the victim’s consent, and she has been charged with sexual assault. Lane has no criminal history, and Judge Susan Miller-Jones ordered her held without bail pending a hearing on a motion from the State Attorney’s office to hold her without bail until trial; at the hearing, a judge may set bail or order her held without bail.

Update on June 12: Judge David Kreider set bail at $25,000.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.