Another Fellow Railroaded by the Legal System

It is sad to see that the legal system insists on running trumped up charges against innocent people, at least that is what this ex-judge must be saying. Here's a bit from a BBC report:

The trial of a former US judge accused of having sex with male inmates in exchange for leniency is set to start in Mobile, Alabama.

Herman Thomas, 48, denies the charges, which include sodomy, kidnapping, extortion, sex abuse and assault.

Up to 15 current and former prisoners are set to testify against him at the jury trial.

He was once the Democratic Party's choice to be the first black federal judge in south Alabama.

Mr Thomas resigned as a judge in 2007 following allegations that he spanked inmates in his private office at the county courthouse with a paddle.

As this -- and the David Letterman affair -- makes obvious, when you have power over people, the temptation to abuse it is great. Here's a judge that couldn't resist the temptation.

The only cure is the same one that the founders of the US Constitution put in place: divide power and set the various elements up to rein in the others. In the case of the judge, there needs to be more supervision of judges by some independent agency to ensure that they don't abuse power. For guys like David Letterman, there needs to be more regulation and enforcement from the levels of management above him and a better system of whistle-blowing for those at his level and below to ensure that hanky-panky gets exposed.

The problem with sexual abuse in the work place is that while many can stand up to it and blow the whistle for themselves, there are a number of people who are simply too easy to victimize. So, if co-workers don't put their foot down and ensure that sex stays out of the office, a predator can lurk about and abuse the power that he/she has and take advantage of the weak.