spandexmonkey
Banned
Nonsense. You don't need a criminal conviction against your name for your reputation or life to be ruined. The the prevalence of slander/libel laws. It could be as simple as someone making a false rape claim on Facebook - once made, the damage can be next to impossible to undo.
If charges aren't filed then there is no damage (that means it never reaches trial and you never get hand cuffed). As you point out, if a public accusation of rape is made the accuser runs risk of libel/slander. only made worse if no formal charges are brought to bear. In fact, it's more likely in US culture for a woman to be shamed for a baseless accusation than for the world to take her claim at face value.
I am open to seeing some data on how the opposite is true, but I've never seen anything remotely like what you are describing.