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There was once a time when “innocent until proven guilty” was true. That gave way to the era of instant news and radio talk shows where we assumed a verdict once evidence presented itself.

Now, we don’t even wait for evidence. If we see something happen that we can’t believe, then we assume it cannot be believable.

We believed in Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa, until we saw the andro and the corked bat. We believed in Roger Clemens, until the Mitchell Report came out. We believed in Barry Bonds, until two reputable investigative reporters wrote a book. We believed in Shawne Merriman, until he got caught. We believed in Floyd Landis, until he failed a drug test.

The list goes on and on.

Now, there’s the case of Dara Torres. She is 41 years old. She is a wife and mother. Earlier this week, at the US Olympic Swimming Trials, she won the 100 meter freestyle, beating out a field of ladies half her age and earning a place on the US Olympic team.

It’s a wonderful story. It’s one of the best accomplishments of all time. In fact, no one at 41 years of age has ever qualified for the US Olympic swimming team. History was made.

And because it’s unbelievable, we have chosen not to believe it. We insist steroids must be involved. Never mind that Torres has never tested positive for any performance-enhancing drugs. Never mind that she volunteered herself for stricter testing from the US Anti-Doping Agency. Never mind that studies show that having a baby has equipped her body to swim faster than she did when she was younger. (Having a baby has added flexibility to her joints, which has naturally given her more speed in the water when she kicks her feet.)

She’s 41. She swam faster than she did in her 20’s. No one has done that before. She must be cheating.

We have finally done it. We have finally taken the Steroid Era as far as it can go. Forget “innocent until proven guilty.” Forget evidence. We have taken the law into our own hands. We have given ourselves the power to declare a verdict any time we want. We have decided that if something seems too good to be true, then it probably is.

It has turned out to be true in the cases of most athletes. In the case of Dara Torres, let’s wait until we have some evidence, maybe a failed drug test, before declaring her guilty.

If it turns out that she’s clean, then we will miss out on a story that deserves our amazement and celebration. That would be a shame.

Scott Wiebe is the author of How to Fix College Football, an eBook available on the Merchandise page of this website. For any questions or comments, send your emails to swiebe2282@yahoo.com. Thanks for visiting the site. Before you go, please click on an ad to the right. Clicking the ads supports this site.