Legal scholar Alan Dershowitz has issued a sharp rebuke against a proposed strategy to reveal the names of alleged Jeffrey Epstein associates, arguing the tactic mirrors the infamous “Red Scare” witch hunts of the 1950s.
In a Thursday op-ed, the former Harvard Law professor criticized a push by victims’ advocates to have members of Congress read lists of accused perpetrators on the House and Senate floors. The controversy centers on a specific constitutional loophole: the Speech and Debate Clause.
Dershowitz argues that by reading names into the congressional record, lawmakers would effectively grant themselves—and the accusers providing the names—total immunity from defamation lawsuits. This maneuver would strip the accused of any legal avenue to clear their names or prove their innocence in a court of law.
“This tactic was employed by Senator Joseph McCarthy,” Dershowitz wrote, drawing a direct parallel to the Wisconsin senator who famously used his position to list alleged communists. Because McCarthy spoke on the Senate floor, those he named—innocent or not—could not sue for libel.
According to Dershowitz, the current atmosphere surrounding the Epstein scandal has whipped up a similar “frenzy,” where due process is being sacrificed for immediate public shaming.
The attorney, who previously represented Epstein, noted that advocates claim to hold a list of 20 prominent alleged abusers. Dershowitz asserts that based on his review of the records, “at least some of those on the list are innocent.”
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He warns that if Congress proceeds with this “name and shame” strategy, these individuals will suffer permanent reputational damage without the ability to challenge the credibility of their accusers.
Dershowitz also referenced his own legal battles, noting that he was able to clear his name in court only because he had the right to sue a false accuser—a right that would be denied to anyone named under congressional immunity.
While acknowledging the need to support victims, the op-ed cautions that the presumption of innocence is becoming a casualty of moral zealotry. Dershowitz closed by invoking a warning from Justice Louis Brandeis, suggesting that the greatest threats to liberty often come from “men of zeal, well-meaning but without understanding.”
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