Once again we face a disturbing story about a Colorado lawmaker who crossed the line of appropriate behavior.

Rep. Paul Rosenthal, a Democrat from Denver, is accused of touching the inner thigh and bottom of a man in his mid-20s at a fundraising event for another candidate in 2012. Denver Post reporter John Frank reported Wednesday that Thomas Cavaness, now 29, filed an official complaint this week against Rosenthal, who is 49.

Cavaness said Rosenthal attempted to kiss him later that same night and that the unwanted sexual advances made him feel uncomfortable. If true, Rosenthal’s actions were inappropriate and he should take responsibility and apologize.

Rosenthal has denied the allegations.

However, while recently we called on Rep. Steve Lebsock to resign over accusations from several women of sexual harassment, we don’t think anything in Cavaness’ report precludes Rosenthal from remaining in office.

The key difference is that Cavaness at the time didn’t work for or with Rosenthal, who in 2012 was seeking election to state office for the first time. The two had exchanged friendly Facebook messages around the time of the campaign event, although Cavaness isn’t certain when exactly the harassment occurred.

It’s never appropriate to touch someone in a sexual nature without their consent. The scenario Cavaness has described would leave the young man with little way to express his displeasure without making a scene, which is often the intent of sexual harassment.

But so far we have no indication that this was anything other than an isolated incident where Rosenthal might have egregiously assumed his touches were welcomed by someone who, while significantly younger, was not a direct subordinate or colleague in a professional setting.

Cavaness should be commended for his bravery in speaking out about a difficult situation. He’s right that people need to realize “there are men who are victims.” Cavaness said there is a systemic problem in the gay community that allows older men to prey upon younger men. We hope that Cavaness’ speaking sends a clear message that this type of behavior, whether in the gay community or not, is reprehensible.

It’s unclear whether Cavaness’ complaint will have standing in the Colorado General Assembly, given that when it occurred Rosenthal was a candidate for office and wasn’t yet beholden to anti-harassment policies adopted by the House of Representatives and Cavaness was working at the Capitol.

Certainly it is within the purview of employers to fire employees when there is evidence they acted inappropriately, especially while in a work setting. But outside of the office or a professional setting, the lines of relationships can get blurred. We don’t see enough reason, given the details in this complaint, for Rosenthal to resign. These accusations, however, should weigh heavily on the minds of the voters who put Rosenthal in office when they return to the ballot box in 2018.

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