alleged, accused, suspected

Each of these words is used to refer to persons involved in legal problems. To allege means "to state positively," "to assert without proof," or "to urge as an excuse or reason." To accuse is "to charge someone with an error or crime." To suspect means "to imagine," "to think guilty without proof of guilt." Newspapers and broadcast news programs often publish stories about an alleged swindler, an accused burglar, or a suspected arsonist. These terms are used as a possible hedge against being sued for libel, but their use in such instances is both debatable and doubtful. One cannot allege a swindler but rather a condition or a crime. An accused burglar is not a burglar who has been accused but a person who has been accused as a burglar. Even so, individuals need the protection such words attempt to provide ^s a defense against the charge of slander, just as newspapers and radio and television stations do against suits for libel. For this purpose, alleged is preferable to either accused or suspected.