U.S. Senator Al Franken has announced that he will soon resign. The public reason he gave for his resignation is that he has been accused of sexual misconduct. The real reason, however, may be something quite different.
For how does a man, even a U.S. Senator, defend himself after he has been accused of sexual misconduct in a society that assumes guilt rather than innocence when a person has been accused of such an offense? A society that ignores important safeguards of the Constitution including that we are innocent until proven guilty.
I don’t know what Sen. Franken did or didn’t do. I don’t know if his accusers are telling the truth.
What I do know is that I am frightened by what I see happening in our society today. What I see is a rush to judgment in the court of public opinion by a group of U.S. Senators calling for Sen. Franken’s resignation even though he has disputed some accusations against him and has not had the opportunity to face those who have accused him in court. What I see are elected officials, who swore under oath to protect the Constitution, ignore the Constitution by choosing a one size fits all path for anyone accused of any type of sexual misconduct .
This rush to judgment and failure to distinguish between accusations and proof is evidence of the legal environment in our country today, which can be compared to past eras when the protections of the U.S. Constitution were denied to Japanese American citizens and others. The legal environment in our country today can also be compared to past eras in other countries such as France where people were led to the guillotine because they were born of nobility.
While it is true that no one in the U.S. is being led to the guillotine today, something almost as dangerous is occurring because individuals accused of sexual misconduct are being denied the protections of the U.S. Constitution. Those individuals have a right to face those who accuse them in a court of law. They also have the right to be declared innocent until and unless it can be proven that they are guilty of the conduct of which they have been accused. Finally, if they are found guilty in a court of law, they have the right to be sentenced appropriately by a judge, not by their peers.
It is time for the United States of America to wake up! It is time for the United States to provide all of its citizens, including those accused of sexual misconduct, with the protections that flow from its Constitution.
— by Janice Bellucci
Read all Janice’s Journals
Thank you, Janice.
Right on Janice!
Please send a copy of this to the The Justices as well as The President and others of authority. Very well written and eye opening. Thanks.
Amen!
McCarthyism. No two ways about. This isn’t even synonymous, this is an exact copy of McCarthyism down to the Hollywood actors and Hollywood elites all the way through the entire three branches of government. All I can say is KARMA is a b@#$$@! right? This is nothing but fantastic and a beautiful example of how unconstitutional acts and greed will eventually bite them in the a@#$$. I would be worried like Janice and every American should be, but to me and I bet a majority on the list, who have and are already been or are being subjected to whats happening. LMFAO at all these people for not stopping these witch hunts and unconstitutional laws. I told you guys collective karma would happen. This entire nation better be holding their breath and praying I win my case or this last stand will be the end of any hope for this country. I am not exaggerating or being vain or being delusional, I hope someone with any kind of legal experience or expertise realizes how important my case is. I don’t need any help from any of them because I have a few of the most intelligent people on the planet allready helping me, but it would be nice to have some supporting breifs or some kind of backup support or something, anything, from some kind of org. My god if and when I prevent my case from being dismissed on some technicality I am going to change not only this country but I will severe all the far reaching tentacles reaching across the globe. You know just about every great invention or movements in history were done by people who the masses thought were insane because they were attempting the impossible eith what they were doing, look how that turned out. Well that’s me, I am out of my mind that I think I can win against the machine and I really could care less what anyone thinks or says. When I don’t get any support or recognition from any of the big orgs it just makes me that much more determined. Chris, AJ, New Person, and inadvertently Will Bassler, Derek logue, Robert Wolf, and all the experts out there that have been brave enough to stand up and challenge the status quo and who are trying to bring sanity back in the world. You will all be cononized. This platform my be one of the most important platforms to ever exist by proxy.
Yes, this is well written.
Why is there a sudden spike in sex allegations among hollywood and politicians. Is this really what the public wants to see in their news headlines? Are the news agencies boasting sex-related stories to compete with internet media. On behalf of 4 people. We are uninterested in hearing about the sex accusation on the news.
I wish Constitution awareness was taught to the public general assemblies. In schools. In courts. Or even cities would mass mail constitutional material to their citizens. When I was growing up. Nobody ever talked about the constitution. Everyone knew it existed. But as a teen it seemed to be a relic from the days of old. Nobody taught us any different.
“For how does a man, even a U.S. Senator, defend himself after he has been accused of sexual misconduct in a society that assumes guilt rather than innocence when a person has been accused of such an offense? A society that ignores important safeguards of the Constitution including that we are innocent until proven guilty.”
A society that assumes guilt rather than innocence is true in all cases of misconduct. Personally, I blame people like wackadoo extraordinaire Nancy Grace, and just plain ignorance on the part of Americans.
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Well said Janice !
The rash of public offenses and the public reaction has me torn. I see public officials accused of actions far worse than the accusations that resulted in my conviction (with lifelong registration) and wonder if I should wish they suffer the same as I do, or wish I could “suffer” the same as them. If only I could give a public speech and resign my job. Instead, once a year on my birthday I have to attend the merely administrative task of showing my county sherif that my fingerprints did not change in the past year. If registration is only administrative, perhaps public officials who have had to resign for sex offenses should also be registered.
Frankly, I would like to demand that some lawmakers like Chris Smith resign. People like him have been abusing me and fellow registrants with ever more restricting laws all for their own political gain. I feel powerless and don’t trust the system which embolden such men. The politics of the powerful vs. the dispossessed is complex. Sometimes the tables seem to turn. When the system continually fails you, and those in power find ways to thwart your every attempt at justice, you look for other ways. In common misery any opportunity is a blessing. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.
Why did he resign? Either guilty as h@#$$ or he has no gonadssss. I would say both…
I truly believe we’re living in the golden age of victim-hood. And I actually believe it’s peaking right now.
Also, this #metoo thing is NOT helping our plight AT ALL..
It is quite simple as to why he resigned so suddenly: he is experiencing what we all experience, being vilified publicly, the shame and embarrassment, the finger pointing, the rumormongering, the hate talk, accusations and suspicion lurking at every gathering you attend. Even if he was innocent, he quickly realized this was not a battle he was ready to fight. Being accused of a sex crime is not for the weak, and having a lifetime sentence of the abuse takes some real tenacity.
While I agree with the general thought behind this post, there is a photo of Al Franken being sexually inappropriate.
Just when you think it couldn’t get any weirder it does, things having become an eerily obsessive phantasmagoria. This must be what it must look like when the whole country suffers a collective nervous breakdown. I’m just waiting for them to administer, what would have to be, the equivalent of electro-shock. The only guilty pleasure still available to me is the very dark satisfaction I take in having called it thirty-five years ago. This was upon the arrival of the pod people to positions of power and influence. “The Invasion Of the Body Snatchers;” mission complete!
Oh, by the way, I have to commend Janice on her beautifully articulated post. I am glad to see her objectiveness when it comes to this subject and not letting emotions get in the way of sound judgement. She does have a very intelligent and observational mind that holds on to reality in times where most people buckle to the emotional hype portrayed by the media and public opinion.
I hope she is praying for my success.
It is a shame that no REAL evidence is needed to convict. The proof of this real problem in our system of blind justice comes in the form of DNA exoneration. The fact that many groups have formed to correct wrongful convictions proves beyond a reasonable doubt that WRONGFUL CONVICTIONS occur in the US on a regular basis.
1. Who, or what groups benefit from WRONGFUL FELONIZATION of innocent men?
2. How has the necessity for “actual evidence” necessary for sound conviction been diminished over time?
3. Once a wrongful conviction has been identified, why is it that so many legal professionals defend the bad conviction so vehemently, even when DNA points to another wrong doer?
I fully agree with your sentiments, though somehow credible accusations of sexual impropriety appear to have no weight when it comes to senatorial candidates in Alabama or the current occupant of the White House.
No Hookscar thats exactly the point is that it isn’t a class action but an as applied challenge. Class actions are much easier to dismiss because of the diversity of plantiffs. it’s been one of the biggest problems with cases like the civil commitment suits and It eould be a bad idea even in an IML suit. Many of our circumstances are different and the laws and results will be different if say someone was included in the suit that is high risk or has multiple convictions. I believe as applied challenges have the best chances of success. John that’s because they have enough gonads to stand up and fight the machine. its not a partisan issue its a courage issue even if they are guilty as hell. Yes it is a huge issue that someone can be convicted on someones word especially knowing all the cases in which people have lied in courts or have failing or altered recollections of facts.
The accused need to stand up and straight scream at the top of their lungs so to speak and demand evidence and not be intimidated into submission. They should be suing anyone who makes these accusation without any evidence for defamation. Especially when they start throwing pedophile and child molester and sexual predator out there. 13th shows how that connotation was what people have been called for decades now. Siper predator was what Clinton use. Jumping to another topic, I just watched the documentary called 13th for an assignment for my sociology class and I recommend that everyone should make it a priority to watch that film.Very powerful.
Super predator. Demagoguery at it’s best.
It makes no sense that after Trump’s numerous sexual harassment claims against him, he remains *President* of the United States of America, while Al Franken (who actually has redeeming qualities) steps down. Meanwhile, Ray Moore — who has seemingly done far worse than Franken — is on the verge of winning Alabama’s Senate seat. The Republicans stand by Moore, while the Democrats have just thrown Franken under the bus… even after all the good he’s done over the years.
Sort of like how Billy Bush was thrown under that Access Hollywood bus. Billy Bush was fired for laughing at Trump’s “locker room talk.” Trump then goes on to become POTUS (maybe with the help of Russian hacking) for telling the jokes that Bush simply laughed at. Go figure!
I guess the difference is that Trump and Moore have denied the allegations. So that would, at least in theory, necessitate some type of trial to prove or disprove guilt. Whereas, Franken — in telling indication of his (probably) more better conscious — immediately admitted that at least some of the allegations were true. IMO, it takes a better person to admit wrongdoing than to deny wrongdoing. I just find it hard to believe that the many women who have come out against Trump and Moore are making it up.
Either way, I think Franken should have weathered the storm and stayed in. If Trump, Moore, et al. refuse to leave, then why should have Franken left? The Democrats lost an influential and intelligent player IMO. But maybe Franken had other reasons?
Thank you Janice for this op-ed piece!
I want to believe that if hit with and made aware of all the facts, negatives, victimization, punishments, restrictions, real family accounts, etc. of this unconstitutional registry that these politicians and media members might pay attention to it (knowing they could be subject to it at some point) and see and support the necessary changes for complete reform and/or (hopefully) elimination. Sorry for the run-on sentence. My guess is that they believe they are all invincible and either know very little about this horrible registry, or believe that they are immune to it’s punishment. No one is above it, right Mr. Sandusky?? Mr. Weiner??
Thank you, Janice, for all that you do!!
Franken’s issue has a basis of truth as there is at least one photograph. And cupping a sleeping woman’s breasts is generally beyond sexual harassment.
There are political considerations here as well. The Democratic Party wants to establish themselves as the “good party” so they are making all their candidates resign, as long as they are in venues where they control the person replacing him or her. This is part of a grander scheme in which Roy Moore, conservative candidate from Alabama, is removed from the race so the democrat can win and create a balance of power difference in the senate. Even if Franken resigns, he will be replaced by another progressive, so there is no loss of partisan difference, but the main goal is to attempt to take out Moore before the election on Tuesday or to discredit him so much that the Democrat wins in a state that they would otherwise have no chance.
Unfortunately, the Moore sex crime accusers don’t have credibility as their stories have been falling apart, though Moore did date teens as a thirty year old legally. (Technically, dating any person of any age is legal, just not sex, but that’s another matter and is not part of this discussion.) Also, there are statute of limitations involved, though if it were proven beyond innuendo then it would destroy Roy Moore’s reputation just as much as if he committed the crime.
Democrats in general play the long political game, and this was predicated on the Weinstein allegations, though they used this as an opportunity to cut the GOP’s senate lead in half which would hamper them the rest of the term should Moore not be elected into the senate.
Ostensibly, they also want to get to Trump via “grabbing p***y” remarks, but Trump can’t be hurt by this. For now, Moore is the main reason why the Democrats are pushing their own out the door. Just sacrifices, like in chess.