Second woman accuses Democratic Sen. Al Franken of inappropriate conduct

A second woman has come forward to complain about the conduct of Democratic Sen. Al Franken (Minn.), CNN reports. Lindsay Menz, now 33, claims Franken "put his hand full-fledged on my rear" when she posed with him for a photo at the Minnesota State Fair in 2010.

"It was wrapped tightly around my butt cheek," Menz told CNN. "It wasn't around my waist. It wasn't around my hip or side. It was definitely on my butt. I was like, oh my God, what's happening."

Menz's husband, who was taking the photo, said that while he could not see the contact his wife described because he was standing in front of the pair, he could confirm that Franken had "reached around [Lindsay Menz] and kind of pulled her into him." Menz posted the photo to Facebook and replied to a comment from her sister by writing: "Dude — Al Franken TOTALLY molested me! Creeper!"

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Menz reached out to CNN after reporter Leeann Tweeden accused Franken last week of groping her in her sleep and kissing her without her consent while on a USO tour in 2006. Menz said of her own experience: "I felt gross. It'd be like being walking through the mall and some random person grabbing your butt. You just feel gross. Like ew, I want to wash that off of me."

Franken said in a statement that he did not remember the events Menz described. "I take thousands of photos at the state fair surrounded by hundreds of people, and I certainly don't remember taking this picture," he said. "I feel badly that Ms. Menz came away from our interaction feeling disrespected." Read the full report at CNN.