Let’s Not Forget the Principle of Presumed Innocence

In the unfolding unpleasantness surrounding the closing of a Cypress day-care home, the next-door neighbor of the operator accused of sexual molestation cut to the heart of the matter with one pained question.

“How can they do this on TV if it isn’t true?” she asked.

Historians may come to use that question to characterize the age in which we live, an age in which there are no more hidden crimes or unspeakable allegations. You can’t find an accusation too shocking to keep off TV or out of the newspapers.

It wasn’t always like that. In a bygone era, the town marshal would take aside the doer of certain awful deeds and tell him, “Get out of town and don’t come back.” The evil would slink away, and the public would be spared learning of the darkness that lurked in its midst.

Somewhere along the line, however, a consensus developed in society that we didn’t want to pretend anymore. We decided we wouldn’t hush up the dirty deeds of child molesters, date rapists and wife beaters. Along with that consensus has been a news media increasingly willing and able to deliver the damning news to large numbers of people on their doorsteps or in living rooms.

Uncomfortable as it may be, we as a society have taken a step forward in exposing our worst crimes. But in so doing, we’ve let the other foot lag behind.

That other foot is the one identified with the principle of presumed innocence.

We’re bombarded with allegations of all kinds of wrongdoing, and we sometimes forget that not all of them are true.

I think that accounts for the pain expressed by the neighbor of Terri Borzoni, the day-care operator state licensing officials have named in allegations of sexual molestation of one of the children in her care. Also named is her assistant, Vicki Jimenez. The women also are accused of as-yet unspecified inappropriate sexual behavior in front of other children.

Both women have vehemently denied the charges.

That’s where the pain comes in. By their very nature, child-molestation cases tear at your heart and your mind. You want guilty people to be stopped; you know that unfairly accused people may be damaged for life.

I can’t join the chorus of people protesting the temporary closing. If the state agency in charge of protecting children thinks there’s substance to the allegation, can you fault it for closing the home?

As a suggested reference point, consider the current case against gynecologist Ivan Namihas, who was accused years ago of sexual misconduct but who continued to practice with impunity because no action was ever taken against him.

The result of that non-action is that more than 150 women have come forward to accuse him of impropriety spanning virtually his entire career. He wound up shutting down his practice in Tustin earlier this month before the state could do it for him.

Didi MacPherson entrusted her young son, now 5, to Borzoni’s and Jimenez’s care for more than a year. She has nothing but good things to say about the women. She and her husband have a 2-year-old boy they plan to send to Borzoni’s home when he gets a little older--assuming Borzoni is still in business.

Yet as parents, they’ve had to do some investigating in light of the accusations. “I want to support Vicki and Terri any way I can,” Didi MacPherson said. “But I, in my own little way, sat down the last couple of evenings with my son and talked to him indirectly--like, did he ever feel uncomfortable or not want to go back to her school?”

Nothing her son said made her wary. I asked MacPherson if she’s absolutely sure she could tell if something had happened.

“As parents, we know the day-in, day-out behavior of our children,” she said. “Especially (in today’s society). When there are changes in their behavior, red flags go up. And I never felt the need for a red flag to go up when he was in their care.”

Yet, as supportive as the MacPhersons are, Didi MacPherson has no complaints with the state.

“I think this is the way it has to be when there’s an allegation. As someone who cares about Terri and Vicki and knows them, I feel really sorry they have to go through this; but as a parent, I want these things to be investigated. But I don’t know how you ever clear your name of something like this.”

We do it by drilling into our heads that allegations aren’t the same as guilt. We do it by saying we want to know about serious accusations involving our children and by saying just as loudly that we’re withholding final judgment until all the facts are in.

When that becomes the national mind-set, we can rightfully call ourselves an enlightened society.