Jian Ghomeshi may have been found not guilty by a judge, but that does not mean that he is innocent in the court of public opinion.
During a scathing ninety minute ruling, Justice William Horkins essentially dismissed the three complainants in the case as liars and handed Ghomeshi his "Get out of Jail Free" card.
The cold, hard truth is that everyone in the Ghomeshi trial appears to be guilty.
The complainants are far from ideal victims. They either lied or omitted truths and failed to paint a true picture of their relationship with Jian Ghomeshi.
A perfect victim would have cut off all contact with Ghomeshi after the very first alleged assault. They would not send him flowers or bikini pictures or tragically long love letters.
A perfect victim would have either ignored Ghomeshi afterwards or sent him angry, irate emails or text messages making it clear that his actions were out of line.
A perfect victim would be consistent, candid and forthright.
Unfortunately, the victims in this case appear to be guilty of many things.
They are guilty of being weak, desperately flawed women who were willing to overlook abusive behaviour in the hopes of cementing a relationship with the famous radio star.
They are guilty of having little or no self-esteem or self-respect. They did not deem themselves worthy of being treated with dignity and respect.
They are guilty of using poor judgment, believing perhaps that someone can change or that it's worth trying to change someone, even when they are shown someone's true colours from the start.
Perhaps if these complainants admitted that they still pursued a relationship with Ghomeshi -- despite the alleged assaults -- they would have disarmed the mighty Marie Henein and left her with less of an arsenal with which to attack.
But we know that many women are willing to tolerate jerks in the hope that they can somehow "save" them. When a man has celebrity or money or some other perceived attribute, it can convince women to overlook certain failings.
Had these complainants been more honest with police and prosecutors -- and with themselves -- perhaps we would have been handed a different verdict.
Perhaps if these complainants admitted that they still pursued a relationship with Ghomeshi -- despite the alleged assaults -- they would have disarmed the mighty Marie Henein and left her with less of an arsenal with which to attack.
But it isn't easy to admit one's personal shortcomings or lack of character.
No one wants to recognize their own destructive behaviour or mull around the poor choices they have made that led to a predictable outcome.
As for Jian Ghomeshi, a not guilty verdict does not erase certain truths in my mind.
Many men may be guilty of being players or jerks, but very few will ever find themselves faced with fifteen different women willing to come forward to police or media outlets to speak about alleged transgressions.
There are also thousands of people who engage in BDSM activities on a regular basis, but never find themselves before police or the courts because those acts were clearly consensual. Even when those relationships go south, there are no complaints made, no allegations of abuse.
But despite all of the shocking testimony and the juicy minefields exploited by Henein that left the courtroom gasping, you just can't get around one thing. At the moment when Ghomeshi is alleged to have pummelled or choked these complainants, none of these women appeared to give their consent.
Jian Ghomeshi may have convinced himself that he simply enjoys "rough sex" and that he is merely a victim of bitter ex-girlfriends.
But despite all of the shocking testimony and the juicy minefields exploited by Henein that left the courtroom gasping, you just can't get around one thing.
At the moment when Ghomeshi is alleged to have pummelled or choked these complainants, none of these women appeared to give their consent. How could they? By all accounts, they didn't see it coming.
Moreover, no one can legally consent to being bodily harmed.
Whatever happened afterwards does not change this very important fact.
One can only hope that other victims will come forward. Victims who are less imperfect with less sordid tales and cleaner endings.
In the meantime, for what it's worth, I hope these three women can take comfort in knowing that Ghomeshi has paid and will continue to pay for his actions.
He has lost his voice.
He has lost a lucrative career.
And his star -- once shiny and revered -- has imploded.
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