> Al Franken’s accuser backed off when the photos of them hanging out being friendly came out along with a ton of witnesses who said they saw the two being frie

> Al Franken’s accuser backed off when the photos of them hanging out being friendly came out along with a ton of witnesses who said they saw the two being friendly the whole time. AFAIK there's a well-known phenomenon of victims later being friendly with their attackers. In general, it doesn't disprove the allegation (I don't know the details about Franken). Based on my poor knowledge of it (and in the absence so far of anyone who knows more), it comes from the desperate need for safety by traumatized people (i.e., those in the fight / flight / freeze state), any way they can get it. That includes by later trying to placate their attackers and checking if the attacker is friendly (or safe). Remember, often attackers are someone the victims previously knew and trusted and then that trust was horribly violated, leaving the victim feeling utterly defenseless (i.e., dependent on the attacker's good will).