Case Aganst Duke Student Unraveling Fast

ABC GMA | Chris Cummo

[MindBender26]

Breaking overnight from Chris Cummo at ABC GMA:

Case against at least one Duke defemdant unraveling fast.

Defendant Seiligman went to bank ATM while rape supposedly happening.

12:02 Time stamped photos show girl arriving. Girl leaves, comes back, call friends on cell phone does other things. 12:19 Seiligman calls cab dispatcher 12:24 Seiligman takes cab to bank miles away, uses ATM card (photos show it is him.) 12:42 after walking back to dorm, Seiligman uses security card to enter dorm. Does not leave.

Also, Seiligman was never interviewed by cops. DA seeking reelection simply took "Dancers" word that he raped her.

[maggief]

It does ... she may have dropped it when she fell on the stairs. I can see how she tripped being impaired, wearing one six inch shoe, hair over her face, and carpet laying on the stairs.

[LK44-40]

Photos!!! THANK you!

[Neverforget01]

Thank you maggie--you're amazing!!

[maggief]

One foot appears to be barefoot.

[snarkytart]

Doesn't that look like a make-up bag she's carrying?

_____________

Definitely!

[wagglebee]

I had a lot of friends in high school and college who were lacrosse player and my brother was a lacrosse player. And the truth of the matter is that lacrosse teams (and rugby teams also) act a lot more like a fraternity than an athletic team. That's just the nature of the sport.

However, nothing makes me believe that these kids could have possibly raped this woman. And the fact that 20 something year old college guys get drunk and act like 20 something year old college guys doesn't mean they are deviants, it means they are normal college guys. As far as the media is concerned, guys should go off to some leftist college and experiment in homosexuality, not get drunk and make lewd comments to women.

[Jrabbit]

Does she go back in the house after this pic...the top one?

[LK44-40]

You give strong testimony. I salute you.

[Carolinamom]

In the first picture of her at the door, is that a bruise on her upper left arm?

[mlc9852]

Well, apparently the lacrosse team has been a problem for some time now. The coach had been warned about the behavior of his players.

[GAgal]

Did she tumble down those brick steps and land at the bottom? If so, I bet she did appear damaged to the SANE person later. I wonder how much those external injuries figured into the hospital findings of "consistent with..."?

[maggief]

You are welcome ... I found them at NBC17

[Neverforget01]

Gotta love this guy Hennican

[GAgal]

That or perhaps a tatoo?

[LWalk18]

Thanks for your post. I think the truth is what's most important- the thought of an innocent man being put in jail over politics should make all of us angry.

[I.D.E.A]

I thought I saw a tattoo when Dan showed the picture. Far away it does look like a bruise though.

[Carolinamom]

Thank you for telling us so eloquently of you experience. Did you and your parents get the justice you deserved?

[maggief]

ACK!

[Law is not justice but process]

"not the DA's job to get a conviction. It's his job to get to the truth."

If you look at the rules of legal ethics, all classes of attorneys except two are supposed to zealously advocate for their client's best interest. The two exceptions are judges and prosecutors. We prosecutors are held to the standard of "doing justice." That means when it becomes clear to us that a case is not founded in fact, we are obliged to dismiss it. I will say again that we do not know all the facts of this case, and the D.A. in Durham may know more than has been revealed in the press so far. So long as he had probable cause when the charges were brought, he was on firm ground ethically. Probable cause means a reasonable beleif that a crime was comitted and that the accused comitted the crime. The accuser's testimony alone is - by statute in most states - sufficient to establish probable cause. The D.A. is under a continuing ethical obligation to cease pursuing the case should he determine it is unsubstantiated. If he does so when he becomes convinced it is unfounded, he is, again, on firm ground ethically. I think he violated another ethical provision by speaking to the press about the facts of the case before trial (over 70 times, I am told), so he is not without exposure to an ethics complaint. However, malicious prosecution would be nearly imossible to prove provided he had the victim's testimony to support probable cause.

From experience, though, I will say it is far less embarrassing to dismiss a case during the investigative phase than it is to dismiss after indictment.

[maggief]

At some point I guess she returns looking for her other shoe.