The Politics Sexual Assault Thread

[China]

State senator scrutinized after photos of female aide found

 

A Nebraska state senator called for a criminal investigation after one of her colleagues said he would resign after admitting that he took photos of a female legislative aide without her knowledge.

 

Democratic state Sen. Megan Hunt of Omaha sent a letter urging the state attorney general and Nebraska State Patrol to investigate the conduct of Republican Sen. Mike Groene to determine if he committed any crimes, according to the Omaha World-Herald.

 

Groene told The Associated Press Friday that he planned to resign this week to avoid putting his family through a public ordeal. The conservative from North Platte who often disagreed with his Democratic colleagues in the Legislature also said he would withdraw from the race for the University of Nebraska Board of Regents and leave politics.

 

Groene announced he would resign after an online news outlet, Nebraska Sunrise News, reported that one of his staffers had filed a complaint after she discovered the photos on Groene’s laptop, which he had given her to complete a project.

 

The staffer who was photographed, Kristina Konecko, told the World-Herald that one detail in the initial stories about her complaint was incorrect. She said that she didn’t find any evidence that the photos had been sent to anyone else.

 

But Konecko did say that some of the photos were close-ups of parts of her body with sexually suggestive captions.

 

The Associated Press does not typically name victims of sexual harassment, but did so in this case because the newspaper said it published Konecko’s name at her request.

 

Groene said he took photos of the staffer, but he described them as harmless images of staffers, visitors and family members in his office. He also denied that any of them were sexual in nature or that focused on particular body parts.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[China]

Air Force allows sex offender to keep serving in military, retire with full honors

 

He sexually assaulted his airman. The Air Force is allowing him to retire with full military honors.

 

The world will recognize him as now-Technical Sgt. Jeremy Zier. For Technical Sgt. Cambria Ferguson, he's known as her worst nightmare.

 

In 2014, Ferguson was stationed in Turkey — fresh out of tech school and an airman first class, at the time. She had just come out as bisexual and was to spend the next 15 months of her life in a foreign country.

 

Ferguson recalls meeting everyone for the first time at her new duty station. She remembers feeling well-received by the office — at first. Her soon-to-be abuser's own wife had even made her a "Welcome" poster by hand.

 

It was Ferguson's first time working in an office that was predominantly male. With just two other women in the office, Ferguson said she soon learned inappropriate jokes were common.

But she started to notice a pattern with her boss Zier – a man once in line to become a chief master sergeant with a notorious fall from grace.

 

Zier would take Ferguson or other airmen to a bar on base, often alone and with someone almost always below his rank, Ferguson said in an Aug. 2020 interview. When he invited multiple people from the office, Ferguson said it was almost always exclusively women.

 

Ferguson didn't think much of it. Other military members of similar rank to Zier's knew he was doing this; they thought it was inappropriate, but no one corrected the behavior, Ferguson added.

 

From prodding questions about her sexuality to an air of toxic masculinity in the office, Ferguson said months of mistreatment culminated in Zier sexually assaulting her in a hot tub.

 

To boost morale, Zier had an idea, Ferguson explained. He helped organize a trip to a nearby spa resort to raise spirits and get everyone's minds off their families leaving.

 

Ferguson admits alcohol was a focus on the excursion. On the final day of the trip, Zier proposed the group do "a hot tub party" that night. Ferguson said Zier came up to the hotel room she was sharing with another co-worker; it was evident he had been drinking "excessively" and inappropriate comments reached a new level.

 

Eventually, the group made its way down to the hot tub. Ferguson recalled a liquor-lined hot tub and feeling "pissed off" that Zier wouldn't quit making inappropriate remarks, despite telling him several times to stop.

 

Ferguson remembers what happens next all too well: Zier is sitting on her left and keeps trying to scoot closer to her. She moves away from him over and over as his hand finds her thigh over and over. For roughly a half-hour, Ferguson said she clearly told him to leave her alone as his subordinates looked on.

 

This happened in April 2015. Ferguson was still required to report to him until she left Turkey in September that same year.

 

Fast forward to 2022, a lot has and hasn't happened since then. Zier was promoted to the rank of senior master sergeant before allegations of misconduct came to light.

 

He is currently a manager at the Air Force Public Affairs Agency at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph, Texas, The Air Force Times reports, despite being found guilty in a special court-martial in Aug. 2020. The jury reduced his rank to master sergeant (one rank down) instead of issuing jail time. He was additionally charged with dereliction of duty for undressing in the hot tub that night with his subordinates present.

 

In December 2020, an administrative discharge board allowed Zier to stay in the Air Force.

 

Despite San Antonio's highest-ranking officer requesting he be fired, Zier has been granted permission to retire from the military as a convicted sex offender. He is slated to receive the full pension of a technical sergeant after only being demoted one rank for a second time.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[LadySkinsFan]

14 hours ago, China said:

Air Force allows sex offender to keep serving in military, retire with full honors

 

He sexually assaulted his airman. The Air Force is allowing him to retire with full military honors.

 

The world will recognize him as now-Technical Sgt. Jeremy Zier. For Technical Sgt. Cambria Ferguson, he's known as her worst nightmare.

 

In 2014, Ferguson was stationed in Turkey — fresh out of tech school and an airman first class, at the time. She had just come out as bisexual and was to spend the next 15 months of her life in a foreign country.

 

Ferguson recalls meeting everyone for the first time at her new duty station. She remembers feeling well-received by the office — at first. Her soon-to-be abuser's own wife had even made her a "Welcome" poster by hand.

 

It was Ferguson's first time working in an office that was predominantly male. With just two other women in the office, Ferguson said she soon learned inappropriate jokes were common.

But she started to notice a pattern with her boss Zier – a man once in line to become a chief master sergeant with a notorious fall from grace.

 

Zier would take Ferguson or other airmen to a bar on base, often alone and with someone almost always below his rank, Ferguson said in an Aug. 2020 interview. When he invited multiple people from the office, Ferguson said it was almost always exclusively women.

 

Ferguson didn't think much of it. Other military members of similar rank to Zier's knew he was doing this; they thought it was inappropriate, but no one corrected the behavior, Ferguson added.

 

From prodding questions about her sexuality to an air of toxic masculinity in the office, Ferguson said months of mistreatment culminated in Zier sexually assaulting her in a hot tub.

 

To boost morale, Zier had an idea, Ferguson explained. He helped organize a trip to a nearby spa resort to raise spirits and get everyone's minds off their families leaving.

 

Ferguson admits alcohol was a focus on the excursion. On the final day of the trip, Zier proposed the group do "a hot tub party" that night. Ferguson said Zier came up to the hotel room she was sharing with another co-worker; it was evident he had been drinking "excessively" and inappropriate comments reached a new level.

 

Eventually, the group made its way down to the hot tub. Ferguson recalled a liquor-lined hot tub and feeling "pissed off" that Zier wouldn't quit making inappropriate remarks, despite telling him several times to stop.

 

Ferguson remembers what happens next all too well: Zier is sitting on her left and keeps trying to scoot closer to her. She moves away from him over and over as his hand finds her thigh over and over. For roughly a half-hour, Ferguson said she clearly told him to leave her alone as his subordinates looked on.

 

This happened in April 2015. Ferguson was still required to report to him until she left Turkey in September that same year.

 

Fast forward to 2022, a lot has and hasn't happened since then. Zier was promoted to the rank of senior master sergeant before allegations of misconduct came to light.

 

He is currently a manager at the Air Force Public Affairs Agency at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph, Texas, The Air Force Times reports, despite being found guilty in a special court-martial in Aug. 2020. The jury reduced his rank to master sergeant (one rank down) instead of issuing jail time. He was additionally charged with dereliction of duty for undressing in the hot tub that night with his subordinates present.

 

In December 2020, an administrative discharge board allowed Zier to stay in the Air Force.

 

Despite San Antonio's highest-ranking officer requesting he be fired, Zier has been granted permission to retire from the military as a convicted sex offender. He is slated to receive the full pension of a technical sergeant after only being demoted one rank for a second time.

 

Click on the link for the full article

 

I can't tell you how angry I am about continued rape culture that's tolerated in our military. This guy needs to be fired without his pension. Until real consequences are given to sex offenders throughout our country, both civilian and military, rape culture continues, ruining victims' lives.

[EmirOfShmo]

I know this isn't 'political' but it's a horrendous, ghastly story of sexual assault by a Penn State player in 1978. The fallout as a result of the incompetence of the legal system is gut wrenching. 

 

Warning: Extremely graphic details included in the story. 

 

When Jerry Sandusky’s crimes came to light, the world thought it was the first time Joe Paterno and Penn State had faced a serial sexual predator in their midst.

But that was not the case ...

This is the story of the predator who had come before.

 

Karen was alone in her apartment when the phone rang.

She didn't like being alone. It had been weeks since she had been attacked there, but the apartment still felt to her like a crime scene, a place that had been turned over and rummaged through. She had called the police on the night of the attack, when she finally convinced herself that she might be safe. She had gone to the local hospital and submitted to an examination. She had opened the Yellow Pages and called a resource new to the town where she had gone to school and now lived, something called a rape crisis center.

 

https://www.espn.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/32496588/before-jerry-sandusky-penn-state-football-had-another-serial-sexual-predator-untold-story-crimes-fight-bring-justice

[LadySkinsFan]

5 hours ago, EmirOfShmo said:

I know this isn't 'political' but it's a horrendous, ghastly story of sexual assault by a Penn State player in 1978. The fallout as a result of the incompetence of the legal system is gut wrenching. 

 

Warning: Extremely graphic details included in the story. 

 

When Jerry Sandusky’s crimes came to light, the world thought it was the first time Joe Paterno and Penn State had faced a serial sexual predator in their midst.

But that was not the case ...

This is the story of the predator who had come before.

 

Karen was alone in her apartment when the phone rang.

She didn't like being alone. It had been weeks since she had been attacked there, but the apartment still felt to her like a crime scene, a place that had been turned over and rummaged through. She had called the police on the night of the attack, when she finally convinced herself that she might be safe. She had gone to the local hospital and submitted to an examination. She had opened the Yellow Pages and called a resource new to the town where she had gone to school and now lived, something called a rape crisis center.

 

https://www.espn.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/32496588/before-jerry-sandusky-penn-state-football-had-another-serial-sexual-predator-untold-story-crimes-fight-bring-justice

 

Very long, very sad story. It's taken me a while to finish it. Not much has really changed as rape culture still prevails with limited prosecution and prison time for these predators. 

[EmirOfShmo]

2 minutes ago, LadySkinsFan said:

 

Very long, very sad story. It's taken me a while to finish it. Not much has really changed as rape culture still prevails with limited prosecution and prison time for these predators. 

Yeah, it's a long story. I think it's length helps tell these incredibly tragic stories of the abuse/assault that occurs in these crimes. 

That's pretty much what struck me - not much has changed. So ****ing sad. 

[Cooked Crack]

 

Quote

LINCOLN — Time after time, Charles Herbster worked the crowds as he attended events, either as a candidate for Nebraska governor, a significant Republican donor or a beauty pageant judge. 

 

He would go up to a group and introduce himself. Often wearing his signature cowboy hat and suit, he would extend a handshake to the men. But when young women reached out for a handshake, as well, on at least several occasions he pulled them into an embrace instead.  

 

Herbster, the CEO of Conklin Co. and now a frontrunner in the 2022 GOP primary race, sometimes went further, according to eight women who spoke with the Nebraska Examiner.  State Sen. Julie Slama State Sen. Julie Slama (Courtesy of Unicameral Information Office) 

 

During an event in 2019, for example, Republican State Sen. Julie Slama confirmed that as she walked by Herbster, he reached up her skirt, without her consent, and touched her inappropriately. The incident happened in the middle of a crowded ballroom at the Douglas County Republican Party’s annual Elephant Remembers dinner.

 

[Cooked Crack]

 

[China]

Email address tied to Trump-backed Nebraska governor candidate Charles Herbster set up account on cheating site Ashley Madison: Republican hit by fresh scandal after being accused of groping several women

 

An email address linked to Charles Herbster, embattled Republican Nebraska governor candidate who is backed by Donald Trump, was used to set up an account on the cheating website Ashley Madison, DailyMail.com can reveal.

 

The address was among millions released by hackers in 2015.

 

The revelation will increase scrutiny of Herbster's troubled campaign after a GOP lawmaker accused him of groping her, and seven other women subsequently made similar allegations.

In a lawsuit lodged last Friday, Herbster said the accusations 'lack even a shred of credibility' and have damaged his reputation. 

 

Trump is due in the state on Friday for a rally to boost his favored candidate. 

 

Herbster, a wealthy cattle breeder and loyal Trump ally, launched his candidacy last year and used the email address charles@herbsterangus.com on his official filing with the Nebraska secretary of state.

 

The same address was in the huge trove of Ashley Madison data dumped online by hackers, according to an independent analysis conducted by a cybersecurity expert for DailyMail.com.

 

The site caters to married people looking to have affairs, with the tagline, 'Life is short. Have an affair.'  

 

The details will raise fresh questions for Herbster, whose campaign makes much of his born-again Christian credentials, business experience and relationship with Trump.

 

But Herbster's campaign was hit by scandal when GOP state Sen. Julie Slama told the Nebraska Examiner that the businessman had reached up her skirt during a 2019 Republican fundraising dinner.

 

'Today's Nebraska Examiner report about Charles Herbster sexually assaulting me in 2019, when I was 22 years old, is true,' she later said in a statement.

 

Six other women, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the Examiner that Herbster groped them on their buttocks, outside of their clothes, at public events. 

 

Click on the link for the full article

[Cooked Crack]

 

 

 

[LadySkinsFan]

57 minutes ago, Cooked Crack said:

 

 

 

 

Poor girl. Glad the jury got it right.

[China]

Congressman Tom Reed resigns, effective immediately, following sexual misconduct accusation

 

Congressman Tom Reed (R-NY23) announced his immediate resignation from office on the floor of Congress on Tuesday.

 

The resignation comes after Reed had previously announced in late March that he would not run for public office in 2022.

 

Reed was accused of sexual misconduct earlier this year, relating to an incident during a political trip to Minnesota in 2017.

 

His accuser, Nicolette Davis, told the Washington Post that Reed massaged her, unclipped her bra and put his hand on her thigh while at an Irish pub in Minneapolis.

 

Following the Washington Post's reporting, Reed initially said in a statement that the allegations were not accurate. However, Reed later released a statement in which he apologized to Davis. His full statement can be read here.

 

Addressing the House on Tuesday, Reed said, "my most profound appreciation is for the people of Western New York. Thank you for giving a country lawyer, the youngest of twelve, raised by a single mother whose father passed away when he was only two, the honor of representing you at the highest level. Only in America can such a dream come true."

 

Reed represented New York's 23rd District, which includes much of the Southern Tier.

 

Governor Kathy Hochul as 10 days from the date of Reed's resignation, May 10, to issue a proclamation declaring a special election in his Congressional district. The election would be no earlier than 70 days from the proclamation and no later than 80 days— placing a special election for Reed's seat in late July or early August.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[China]

Roy Moore Loses Appeal Seeking to Revive Suit Against Sacha Baron Cohen: Court Says ‘Pedophile Detector’ Sketch Was ‘Clearly Comedy’

 

Former Alabama judge Roy Moore cannot revive his defamation lawsuit against comedian Sacha Baron Cohen over the latter’s “pedophile detector” sketch, which was “clearly comedy,” a federal appeals court ruled on Thursday.

 

The ruling falls less than a month after Moore’s attorney Larry Klayman compared his client to Johnny Depp before a skeptical three-judge panel at the Second Circuit Court of Appeals.

“He deserves a jury,” Klayman said of Moore on June 10.

 

The Second Circuit panel did not take long to unanimously disagree, returning an 11-page summary order extolling the virtues of comedy as a vehicle of social commentary.

 

“Humor is an important medium of legitimate expression and central to the well-being of individuals, society, and their government,” the court’s order states, citing a book by Senior U.S. Circuit Judge Robert D. Sack, a Bill Clinton appointee. “Despite its typical literal ‘falsity,’ any effort to control it runs severe risks to free expression as dangerous as those addressed to more ‘serious’ forms of communication.”

 

Click on the link for the full article

[Cooked Crack]

On 2/21/2022 at 10:11 AM, China said:

Groene told The Associated Press Friday that he planned to resign this week to avoid putting his family through a public ordeal. The conservative from North Platte who often disagreed with his Democratic colleagues in the Legislature also said he would withdraw from the race for the University of Nebraska Board of Regents and leave politics.

Quote

On Thursday, Groene said he regretted resigning from the Legislature and did so only because he got bad advice from Gov. Pete Ricketts, who urged him to resign, and from Speaker of the Legislature Mike Hilgers and Sen. Dan Hughes, the Executive Board chairman. 

 

Groene said he was scared of what they could do to him and “wasn’t ready for another fight” in the Legislature. He also claimed that Hilgers and Hughes had bowed to the “me, too” crowd and the “mean girls” of the Legislature. 

 

“I’ve been politically assassinated, cut off at the knees,” he said. 

Quote

Groene said the initial complaint came from a “disgruntled employee” who invaded his privacy. He said the photos, which were on a government-owned laptop, were all taken in public settings. He said they were face shots, taken because he “admired her smile.” He said one photo, captioned “legs,” was taken because he was curious about a tattoo on the staffer’s leg.

 

Very believable 🙄

[China]

Perry Hooper Jr., former Alabama lawmaker, charged with sex abuse in Montgomery

 

A former state legislator is facing a felony sex charge.

 

Perry Oliver Hooper Jr., 67, is charged with first-degree sex abuse, Montgomery police Capt. Saba Coleman confirmed Tuesday.

 

Perry Hooper Jr., a member of the National Trump Campaign Victory Committee gives two thumbs up before the parade. 

 

Details of the allegations against Hooper have not been disclosed and records on the case are not yet listed in Alabama’s online court system. Coleman said the alleged incident happened about 8 p.m. Aug. 16, 2022, in the 100 block of Commerce Street.

 

Hooper was taken into custody Tuesday by U.S. Marshals. He was booked into the Montgomery County Detention Facility at 11:56 a.m. with bond set at $15,000.

 

Click on the link for the full article

 

 

[Cooked Crack]

 

[Cooked Crack]

 

[China]

Ex-Idaho state lawmaker sentenced to 20 years in prison for raping a legislative intern

 

A former Idaho state lawmaker was sentenced to 20 years in prison on Wednesday after being found guilty earlier this year of raping a 19-year-old state legislative intern in 2021.

 

Aaron von Ehlinger, 40, was found guilty in April of a rape charge, while also being acquitted of a charge of forcible penetration by use of a foreign object, according to court documents.
Ada County District Judge Michael Reardon sentenced von Ehlinger to 20 years in prison for the guilty conviction, with eligibility for parole after eight years. The Ada County prosecutor's office had recommended a 40-year sentence with 15 years fixed prior to parole eligibility, according to a release from county prosecutor Jan Bennetts' office.

"I want to thank Jane Doe for the courage she has demonstrated in this case," Bennetts said in the release. "I appreciate the tireless work done by the Boise Police detectives on this case, which allowed my team to ensure justice was served."

CNN has reached out to von Ehlinger's attorney for comment.

The victim, then a 19-year-old intern for a different lawmaker, accused von Ehlinger -- then a 38-year-old Republican state representative -- of engaging in nonconsensual sexual acts with her in March 2021 after taking her to dinner.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[Cooked Crack]

 

Quote

The alleged incident took place in Dallas on Aug. 26, at the premiere of Uncle Tom II, a conservative film that Schaffer co-produced. Gonzales and Schaffer were seated next to each other in the theater, according to a picture that Schaffer tweeted before the film. As the film played, according to a complaint made to management at The Blaze and described to The Daily Beast, an intoxicated Schaffer began to grope her breasts.

 

[China]

‘It was simply a hug’, says defeated SD House candidate accused of rape

 

A failed South Dakota house candidate made his initial appearance in court Tuesday on a charge of second-degree rape.

 

Bud Marty May, 37, of Kyle, was first arrested on Nov. 13 on one count of second-degree rape. This a class 1 felony that could carry up to 50 years in prison and would have May pay up to a $50,000 fine.

 

The alleged victim said May decided to force himself on the victim in a bathroom stall at a bar and says May said to her at the bar: “I am 6′8″, white, it is all consensual.” According to the police report, he fled the area, and upon being detained he claimed he had no involvement at first, then claimed: “it was simply a hug.”

 

 

Click on the link for the full article

[China]

 

[Cooked Crack]

 

 

[China]

 

[TheGreatBuzz]

1 hour ago, China said:

 

 

What was the name of that dude I mentioned this to the other day so I can tag him?

[The Evil Genius]

8 minutes ago, TheGreatBuzz said:

 

What was the name of that dude I mentioned this to the other day so I can tag him?

 

I think that guy might be done for. 😆