Welcome to the United States of America, where one is given the benefit of the doubt until the evidence against one is so daunting that it is no longer possible for them to be presumed as anything other than guilty. “Innocent until proven guilty” is the saying, I believe. Lions’ head coach Matt Patricia is no different than anyone else, as he was never proven to be guilty.
When a story broke a few days ago regarding a sexual assault charge that was brought up against Patricia all the way back in 1996, there was an immediate wave of a wide variety of emotions from fans. The team didn’t miss a beat, quickly showing their support for Patricia.
First things first, let me make a few disclaiming points: 1. Sexual assault is a very serious matter. Nobody should ever be subjected to such treatment, and those who are, in fact, guilty of such actions deserve to be punished to the full extent of the law. 2. If he were guilty, I would be in complete favor of giving Patricia the same treatment as anybody else who has committed such an act. But, the fact that he was indeed never found guilty still remains. 3. An accusation of sexual assault is extremely damning to one’s reputation. I’m most definitely not going to tell you that high-profile people don’t do things that they shouldn’t, but I am saying that things such as an accusation can have irreparable repercussions for the one being accused. I am also saying that celebrities and other high-profile people have been falsely accused of such things before in the past, and likely will be again in the future.
Yes, numerous different outlets have reported on different aspects of the accusation that don’t look so good for Patricia. But, you can stir up details on just about anything that can be spun in just about any direction. The Detroit Free Press recently reported that there were five prosecution witnesses, and the NFL itself is investigating the matter. But, a guilty verdict never came from the trial. In fact, the actual trial never even occurred, as the lady who made the accusation decided that she could not handle the pressures that came with a trial.
Another disclaiming point that I’d like to make: Most of us are not able to imagine the amount of scrutiny and pressure one would face when bringing an accusation such as sexual assault against a high-profile name. In no way am I condemning this lady for not going through with the trial. But, I will say that if this accusation stemmed from events that truly did happen, she should have gone through with the trial. As a people, we need to be held accountable for our actions. If (and I can not stress how big of an “if” that is), something illegal did happen, my thoughts towards Patricia would be no different than they would be against any other person who may have committed such actions.
The fact that the lady who accused Patricia of these acts decided not to proceed with the trial leaves us with no way of knowing exactly what happened during that Spring Break night. We will likely never hear from any of the witnesses, or see/hear any of the evidence that the prosecution had to offer. We obviously know what she claims happened, and then, of course, we know what Patricia has said, as well. He has stood by his innocence since the time the charge came to light, and 22 years later, he maintains his innocence.
How this story slipped through the cracks of what one would assume was an incredibly in-depth character search (including background checks) while the team was searching for their next coach, we may never know. The one thing we do certainly know is that Matt Patricia was never proved as guilty in a court of law, and therefore is presumed to be an innocent man.
