Posted on 11/04/2006 1:31:54 AM PST by abb
Joseph Neff, Benjamin Niolet and Anne Blythe, Staff Writers DURHAM - Four days after she said she was raped, the accuser in the Duke lacrosse case told co-workers at a Hillsborough strip club that she was going to get money from some boys at a Duke party who hadn't paid her, the club's former security manager said.
"She basically said, 'I'm going to get paid by the white boys,' " H.P. Thomas, the former security manager at the Platinum Club, said in an interview Friday. "I said, 'Whatever,' because no one takes her seriously."
On March 14, the woman said she was assaulted and raped by three men at a lacrosse team party that began late on the night of March 13. Three players -- David Evans, 23, of Bethesda, Md.; Collin Finnerty, 20, of Garden City, N.Y.; and Reade Seligmann, 20, of Essex Fells N.J. -- have been charged with rape, sexual assault and kidnapping. All three have declared their innocence and called the accusations lies.
Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong declined to comment on Thomas' recollections. Thomas said he had not previously come forward on the advice of lawyers.
Nifong has said in court that nearly a month after the party, the woman was in his office and appeared too traumatized to talk about what had happened to her. Nifong said that throughout the April 11 meeting with Nifong and police investigators, the woman seemed near tears and had trouble making eye contact.
But less than a week after the party, Thomas said, the woman seemed fine, and weeks later, he realized a friend of his had a video of her dancing at the club in the early hours of March 26.
The accuser never gave any indication that the party was a bad time, let alone that she was assaulted or raped, Thomas said.
"She was as regular as pie," Thomas said. "She didn't do anything different."
The News & Observer generally does not identify the complainants in sexual assault cases. The woman could not be located for comment Friday.
On March 17, the woman showed Thomas a hospital bracelet and paperwork. While she talked about being owed money, the accuser never gave any word or indication of being hurt, he said.
"The other girls would have known if something had happened," Thomas said. "If another dancer had been beat up or raped by a bunch of white boys, there would have been a ruckus."
Records show she had been seen at Duke and UNC Hospitals on March 14 and 15.
Thomas said dancers must sign in when they take guests into the club's VIP room. He said those sheets show that the woman had signed in March 17 and 18. He said she also danced the following weekend.
The club's owner, Victor Olatoye, said the club's records show the woman was dancing at the club March 23, 24, 25 and into the early hours of March 26. Olatoye has no record of her working the previous weekend.
Olatoye said he had given a sworn statement to an investigator in Nifong's office last month initially saying that he had not seen the woman since February.
That night at the club, Olatoye checked his records and called the investigator back to change his sworn statement.
Olatoye said he has not seen the woman since March.
Thomas said he worked as security manager at the club from January through April. He said he had little to gain by coming forward because of a pending cocaine possession charge. Staff writer Joseph Neff can be reached at 829-4516 or jneff@newsobserver.com.
http://media.www.dukechronicle.com/media/storage/paper884/news/2006/11/06/Editorial/Cheek.For.District.Attorney-2441315.shtml?sourcedomain=www.dukechronicle.com&MIIHost=media.collegepublisher.com
Editorial
11/6/06
Cheek for district attorney
She filed the complaint long ago.
She is talking now because she is safely out of the Fong's reach.
This is probably just the tip of the iceberg out of the DA's office with that moron running it....
Maybe others will feel safe to talk now.
Wow. I didn't refresh my screen quick enough. It wasn't there when I posted some 3 1/2 minutes later. Not that I wanted to see it anyway... :-)
Bump!!
She filed the complaint long ago.
Anyone want to place bets that the defense attorneys are already interviewing the ADA who just filed the sexual harassment complaint?
If that doesn't sum it all up for me, I don't know what else does.
The crazy cast of characters, including Nifong and MILFMAN Shouldn't matter in the least---The bottom line is there is NO evidence of any crime having taken place. How do three men get indicted for a non-crime? I guess that's where the cast of characters comes in.
It is instructive that Ashley Cannon chose to speak on the record to a "blog" instead of the HeraldSun or the NandO. She knows who to trust, evidently.
The time for her to talk is at Nifong's disbarment hearing.
Anyone want to place bets that the defense attorneys are already interviewing the ADA who just filed the sexual harassment complaint?
It may not be her jobe to help the defense, but it is her job to seek truth and justice. If she knows of misconduct in the Durham DA's office (and we all know she does), she should come forward and help get the charges dropped. That is the least she could do, under the circumstances.
http://www.newsobserver.com/145/story/506921.html
says "A former Durham prosecutor said Sunday" and "Cannon said in an interview Sunday".
That article is time-stamped 12:30 AM & 2:12 AM this morning, whereas KC's entry was at 8:12 AM. The N&O article was obviously up first.
Important to note again:
FINESSE G. COUCH, Individually and asAdministratrix
of the Estate of Carnell Simmons Couch
Plaintiff,
v.
PRIVATE DIAGNOSTIC CLINIC and DUKE UNIVERSITY,
Defendants.
Appeal by defendants from judgment entered 3 March 1997 by Tillery, J., inSuperior Court, Durham County. Heard in the Court of Appeals 22 September1998.
(Willie) Gary, Williams, Parenti, Finney, Lewis, McManus, Watson & Sperando, byMaria P. Sperando and Keith A. Bishop, for plaintiff-appellee.
Tho she might be able to talk to the Judge off the record...
...she should come forward and help get the charges dropped. That is the least she could do, under the circumstances.
LOL! Under the circumstances, what Bar would uphold Nifong and disbar Ashley Cannon? I'm sure she is smart enough to know how to leak any pertinent information, if she hasn't already, through someone here. Think about it.
Am I jumping to conclusions to think there could be a connection between Jarriel's deceased brother (lawsuit?) and Couch's deceased brother? Has anyone looked into whether both families have filed lawsuits for wrongful death?
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