Stan Rosenberg Files Lawsuit to Reveal Hefner Accuser’s Identity
Last month, Doe filed court documents alleging Rosenberg knew his husband posed a threat to others but did not act.
Photo via AP/Elise Amendola
As Bryon Hefner’s sexual misconduct scandal unfolded, his husband, former Senate President Stanley Rosenberg, lost his powerful position at the State House, the trust of his colleagues, and the respect of his constituents.
And now, it seems, he’s comfortable with losing his polite, wonkish, nice-guy reputation, too.
On Tuesday, Rosenberg’s attorney filed court documents requesting that the identity of Hefner’s unnamed accuser be revealed publicly on the grounds that there’s not a strong enough case to warrant anonymity, the Boston Herald reports.
“[John Doe] fails to advance any grounds sufficient to justify permitting him to continue to level highly public, incendiary, and destructive allegations against Mr. Rosenberg from behind ‘a cloak of anonymity,’” Rosenberg’s attorney, Michael Pineault, wrote in the filings, according to the Herald.
Hefner’s attorney, Tracy Miner, filed court documents to the same effect on Thursday and told the Herald that releasing Doe’s name is necessary because “nobody can challenge his credibility publicly because he is anonymous.”
Last month, Doe filed a lawsuit against Rosenberg accusing the former Senate president of knowing his husband was dangerous but failing to intervene. By remaining on the sidelines, Rosenberg enabled Hefner’s alleged misconduct and put State House personnel in harm’s way, Doe argues. In the civil lawsuit, Doe accuses Hefner of sexual abuse in Rosenberg’s company on two separate occasions and on a third occasion in the couple’s North End condo.
In April, Hefner pleaded not guilty to charges of sexual assault, distributing nude images without consent, and criminal lewdness.
The Senate Ethics Committee found no evidence that Rosenberg violated the chamber’s rules, but detailed his complicity in Hefner’s behavior in a blistering May report that ultimately foretold the legislator’s resignation.
In November, four men told the Boston Globe they had been sexually assaulted and harassed by Hefner over the course of several years. The alleged victims said at the time that they chose not to come forward sooner because they feared angering Rosenberg.
