The decision by Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows to remove former President Donald Trump’s name from the Republican primary ballot is beyond belief.
I am not a lawyer, but five minutes of research revealed that the long-held legal precedent of “innocent until proven guilty” was first enshrined in American legal practice in the 1894 Supreme Court decision, Coffin v. United States, and it has been since used repeatedly in American court cases. Additionally, this principle has been adopted internationally in the U.N. Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, in the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights in 1953, and the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
As of this moment, Trump has not been impeached or convicted of any crime – that is the job of juries and judges, not secretaries of state. Therefore, this decision ignores the “presumed innocent” concept of over 100 years of American legal practice. If not overturned immediately, it imperils the concept of free choice by the electorate, which impacts every candidate for future office, regardless of political affiliation.
Maine Rep. John Andrews has requested a joint order for Secretary Bellows to be impeached. Bellows was elected by the Maine Legislature in 2020. Our Maine representatives should remove her from office.
John Facella
Raymond
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