Chris Harrison Explains Why Lincoln Didn't "Deserve" To Be At Becca's 'Men Tell All' Special?

The Bachelor and The Bachelorette are supposed to be fun, lighthearted shows, but sometimes, real life creeps in and we’re forced to deal with it Like when President Trump preempted the show twice on Becca’s Bachelorette season. Or, in the case of Lincoln Adim, when very real-life assault charges came to light after filming had ended, but the season had just premiered. The network aired all of the episodes despite the news, s why isn’t Lincoln on The Bachelorette: Men Tell All? He’s been convicted of a serious crime.

On May 21, 2018, Lincoln was convicted, according to Variety, of indecent assault and battery stemming from an incident that occurred on a harbor cruise in Boston in 2016. The conditions of his conviction include a suspended year behind bars and two years of probation. He must attend three Alcoholics Anonymous meetings per week for those two years and stay away from the victim. Lincoln must also register as a sex offender, per the same Variety report.

All of this means that Lincoln had some very serious charges against him leading up to and during filming The Bachelorette, leading many to wonder how it was possible that ABC and Warner Bros., which produces The Bachelor franchises, missed the assault and battery charges on his record.

In a statement to Deadline, Warner Bros. claimed that none of this ever came up on a background check:

“No one on The Bachelorette production had any knowledge about the incident or charges when Lincoln Adim was cast, and he himself denied ever having engaged in or having been charged with any sexual misconduct. We employ a well-respected and highly experienced third party who has done thousands of background checks consistent with industry standards to do a nationwide background check in this case. The report we received did not reference any incident or charge relating to the recent conviction — or any other charges relating to sexual misconduct. We are currently investigating why the report did not contain this information, which we will share when we have it.”

According to Entertainment Tonight, Bachelor host Chris Harrison explained that Lincoln wasn’t invited to the Men Tell All special because he didn’t deserve to be there. “I did not want him here nor did he deserve to earn the right to be here. He forfeited that right obviously with what he did, and lying to us and deceiving everybody," Harrison said. "So, no, I'm very glad that he was not here and he was not extended an invitation."

While it might be hard to swallow that a serious arrest didn't show up on a background check, at least ABC is doing its part to rectify Lincoln’s presence on Becca’s season in the first place. Any person charged of sexual misconduct should not be allowed on reality TV, especially a show centered around dating and cocktails parties. It really does a disservice to the reputation of the show, the network and production company, as well as Becca, who didn't have a say about dating a man with an indecent assault and battery charge on his record. Let’s hope that in the future, the show’s background checks are more thorough so these kinds of controversies can be avoid and everyone can feel safe.