The legal principle of presumption of innocence goes back at least to the 6th-century Eastern Roman Empire. In his “Digest,” Emperor Justinian I described the principle of Ei incumbit probatio qui dicit, non qui negat, or “Proof lies on him who asserts, not on him who denies.” The United Nations 1948 “Universal Declaration of Human Rights” states in Article 11:
Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has had all the guarantees necessary for his defense.
And, of course, the principle is enshrined in the United States Constitution, in the 5th, 6th, and 14th Amendments.
That’s almost two millennia of the legal principle of “innocent until proven guilty.” It’s a fundamental, defining principle of civilized people.
That is, unless you’re Whoopi Goldberg, and talking about former President…
