Posted on 04/25/2006 2:34:48 AM PDT by abb
DURHAM - District Attorney Mike Nifong plans to reinstate misdemeanor charges against a half-dozen Duke lacrosse players, saying a March 13 party where a woman reported a rape broke the deals that the players made with prosecutors.
Nifong's decision could affect players who, before the party, had entered agreements in which prosecutors would dismiss the cases if the players performed community service and stayed out of trouble for six months or a year. Among the first to have his charges reinstated was David Evans, one of the team captains who lived at 610 N. Buchanan Blvd., the site of the party in which lacrosse players hired two women from escort services to dance. One of the women told police that she was raped by three men in a bathroom.
Two players, Collin Finnerty, 19, and Reade William Seligmann, 20, were charged last week with first-degree rape, first-degree sex offense and first-degree kidnapping. Their attorneys say the men are innocent.
On Monday, an attorney for Seligmann filed a motion seeking information that would help attack the credibility of the woman, the only person, according to the defense filing, who says a rape occurred. The motion seeks information about the woman, including criminal charges, mental and emotional problems the woman has suffered as well as social services, probation, child protective services and victim's advocacy records.
Today, Finnerty is due in a Washington court where prosecutors in an assault charge are considering whether to revoke a deferred prosecution agreement similar to those affecting other players in Durham.
According to court records, 16 players were charged in the past three years with misdemeanor charges in Durham including noise violations, public urination and alcohol violations. The deals placed the men on probation for either six months or a year.
(Excerpt) Read more at newsobserver.com ...
When this is over, "Nifong" will become a popular term denoting incompetent or unethical behavior. As in, "He nifonged the case, so we had to drop the charges."
Nice post:
1. I think your guesses as to what else the defense has is likely correct.
2. It is hard to prove a negative, ie if I am at a party with you, I can not swear you did not commit a crime. I can only say I did not see you commit a crime. You might have committed one out of my sight.
3. I think the DA knows his goose is cooked unless the DNA comes back a match on a player. I think people here are possibly misconstruing what inconclusive might mean. It could be that on some of the DNA not all the players can be rule out, but none can be identified. That is what inconclusive usually means. Possibly more accurate and more expensive tests are being done in the second run. But the defense seems to know there was not sexual assault so the DA is unlikely to find a match. When you think about it if you test 40 people, it should not be a shock if some of them can not be ruled out. BTW, if he finds a match it better be seminal fluids or what does that show? Some of these guys clearly helped this very out of it woman to her partner's car.
4. I agree the AV/CW is not likely to make a good witness.
Wendy Murphy actually said that if Reade made her perform oral sex, there wouldn't be any DNA in her mouth.
That's a rumor.
ESPN will be reporting tomorrow that they argued over money when they stopped dancing.
Freda: no dealing with lax players in her 14 years. Knows of no reputation for rowdiness or bad behavior.
If she told the DA that they did her with a broom, why didn't he put that in ANY of the search warrants?
I'll buy alcohol, but not drugs... From what I read of the AV she appears to have recently been honored for having good grades... I don't think you consistently get good grades with a drug habit...
I'll buy booze as courage or mental defense mechanism... She got drunk to do a disgusting job... If she has had run-ins with CPS before, this may have been her only out...
Personally I see Kim as a scam artist in this deal and the AV as a desperate, misguided, scared woman... But that's just my opinion... I haven't see the AV speak in person yet...
I should clarify that the "nifonging" comment is mine, not from Tucker's show.
HA!!! I could just picture her with that snide smile....
Wendy Murphy actually said that if Reade made her perform oral sex, there wouldn't be any DNA in her mouth.
_________________________________________________
If she fought as she reportedly described, anyone who put their member in her mouth would be dismembered.
What????
Ping me when you get that timeline done.
From what I read of the AV she appears to have recently been honored for having good grades...
________________________________________________________
Unfortunately historically African-American college went from being very demanding prior to 1960 to being not very demanding at all post 1970. Good grades at NCCU do not necessarily mean anything.
I heard it locally tonight.
Now Jesse Jackson is going to call them racists for not wanting to see black women dance naked!
Isn't that where she lives?
Were her kids by themselves?
Were they with her father? If so, where the hell did he think she was?
What?
The father said he drove her to the store.
Geez, we still haven't nailed down the exact time her father learned of the alleged rape. I assume if the police had stopped by his house to check on the youngins, he would have learned that night.
North Carolina is an open files discovery state; they're entitled to ALL it, good and bad, now.
They can sure as hell ask her daddy.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.