Posted on 05/01/2006 7:51:52 AM PDT by don'tbedenied
Accused Duke lacrosse player Reade Seligmann's attorneys want Durham County District Attorney Mike Nifong thrown off the case.
Today, they filed a legal motion specifically asking for it.
"DA Mike Nifong neglected his duty as a prosecutor to seek the truth and a fair prosecution," the defense's motion reads.
The motions were filed just 24 hours before Nifong's Tuesday election in which he's fighting to keep his seat. Nifong is being challenged by former prosecutor Freda Black and private lawyer Keith Bishop
Thanks so much...there goes lunch!
Exactly, the neighborhood seems fed up with Duke off campus residents and may see this as an opportunity for change.
http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=triangle&id=4054178
Eyewitness News has learned that the Durham City Council plans to weigh in on the Duke lacrosse rape investigation at this week's meeting.
The Council is expected to get an update from Durham Police Chief, Steve Chalmers during Thursday's work session meeting.
One council member is particularly interested in the developments. Eugene Brown lives a few houses away from the house at the center of the alleged rape. "I think Duke has to know that the lacrosse team is out of hand, they haven't seized the ticking bomb and now it exploded." Brown said.
Brown has lived on North Buchanan Boulevard for more than 25-years, he says the team has been out of control for some time. "Obviously the team is out of control, it's been out of control evidently for several years, and this is not new with what the lacrosse team has done, that's excluding the rape allegation, excluding the rape allegation absolutely."
http://www.newsobserver.com/1185/story/432797.html
One of the things I plan to say is, 'Duke is a private university, but guess what? Some of your students are a public nuisance,' " Brown said Tuesday. "Another thing is, 'Duke is a first-rate institution with third-rate housing.' And the third thing is, 'This is not the time for political gesture.' "
Brown praised President Richard Brodhead for trying to tackle problems caused by a minority of Duke students living off campus. He hopes to persuade officials to consider an off-campus housing policy adopted by Wake Forest several years ago.
"The way I understand it, what they do is, living off campus, it's not a right, it's a privilege, even for seniors," Brown said.
To live off campus, Wake Forest students must apply for permission, giving administrators a way to control where students live and how many move into a house or neighborhood. The policy requires students to sign a contract with university officials and their landlords promising to obey campus rules and city ordinances.
Students caught disobeying the regulations twice must give up their privilege and apply to return to campus housing.
When my middle son, my challenge child, was involved in drugs, (meth to be specific) my biggest fear is that he would cross the line of no return and end up in prison.
I was not afraid of his psychotic outbursts when he was tweaking
I was not afraid of his aggressive behavior
I was not afraid of any dealer whose name I gave to my SWAT friend
I was not afraid of the monster my loving son had become
I was not even afraid of him dying, because I looked him in the eye and said when we put you in the ground,I will be able to say I did all I could do.
What terrified me, what kept me up nights was the sound of the bars closing behind him if he did not hit his bottom before that..
My long winded point is I can only begin to imagine the fear of a parent when their child is facing prison for a crime that did not happen.
Son is doing well, rolled up, pled out and has been clean for about 2 years. Still do not trust him as far as I can throw him, but he understands that.
Thanks so much for your courageous post. Congratulations to your recovering son. You've experienced every parent's nightmare. As one of the lacrosse players said, "This could be anyone of us." God bless you and your family.
Sorry to hear about your troubles with a son. I have had challenges with my own sons and similar fears. The middle guy is the problem one right now. The important thing is that you have a good attitude and your son is better. Love and support of family and prayers go a very long way to gaining some level of peace.
I bet she thinks her sh!t doesn't stink... Sorry, that's what I think of people like her.
I chalk this "screaming" story up to typical misinformation out in the media and rumors.
Here's another article re: Trinity Park
http://www.dailycolonial.com/go.dc?p=3&s=2654
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Yeah, this trial has to be moved.
Honestly TexKat.
We did not need to see that.
lol
Boy what you've been thru (and are still going thru). God Bless you all.
Just damn, Protect. You and your son have been through hell and back. I'm glad to hear that he's now doing well. My best of wishes to you and him.
The defense will be able to judge that, has the case been assigned to a judge? If so whom? Are judges elected or appointed in North Carolina?
If we knew more we wouldn't have to speculate so much about the jury pool. We need a NC freeper attorney to help us out here.
By John Stevenson : The Herald-Sun jstevenson@heraldsun.com
Apr 3, 2006 : 11:24 pm ET
DURHAM -- After a weeklong media frenzy, District Attorney Mike Nifong switched gears Monday and went mum about the alleged gang rape of an exotic dancer by members of the Duke University lacrosse team.
Still predicting there would be no charges in the case until next week at the earliest, Nifong said he would grant no more interviews until he has something new to announce.
The chief prosecutor said he had devoted more than 40 hours to reporters in recent days, adding that it was time "to turn my attention to some of the other matters that the citizens of Durham expect me to handle on their behalf.
"At this point, all of the information that can appropriately be discussed at this juncture of the investigation has already been disseminated through multiple media outlets, and any further discussion of that information by me would accomplish no legitimate purpose," Nifong said in a written statement. "Consequently, I find that I must henceforth decline to grant any additional requests for interviews, either on or off camera, to interested media outlets."
Nifong said the volume of media attention came as a surprise to him, surpassing even that given to the Michael Peterson murder case in its early stages.
The Peterson trial, in which the Durham novelist was convicted of killing his wife and sentenced to life in prison, was broadcast nationally gavel-to-gavel in 2003. However, the degree of national media interest picked up gradually and did not instantly soar to high levels, as it has done with the Duke case.
"When I first learned of this assault and the circumstances under which it allegedly occurred, I expected that it would receive some media attention," Nifong said of the alleged lacrosse incident Monday. "Unfortunately, I greatly underestimated both the breadth and the depth of the media interest that would ensue."
Fending off a persistent local television reporter who pleaded Monday for only two minutes of camera time, Nifong said he already had done some 70 interviews about the alleged rape -- 10 times more than he was asked to do even in death-penalty murder cases of past decades.
Meanwhile, several defense lawyers indicated Monday they would release the results of DNA tests conducted on bodily samples taken from 46 Duke lacrosse players, even though Nifong pledged earlier to keep the results confidential. He has also said the test results won't determine whether anyone is charged in the case.
According to Nifong, the State Bureau of Investigation in Raleigh is expected to finish the DNA tests this week.
By law, the results must be given to the Duke students or their lawyers -- or both -- whether or not Nifong consents to release them. It then would be up to the defense attorneys whether or not to make them public.
Police have said in court documents that the DNA tests would identify which lacrosse players raped the exotic dancer. She claimed there were three, all of them white.
Defense lawyers contend, on the other hand, that their clients will be vindicated by the tests because no sexual attack occurred.
Nifong faces off in a May Democratic primary election against two contenders for his job: former Durham Assistant District Attorney Freda Black and Keith Bishop. There are no Republican candidates.
Bishop said Monday he was "concerned about whether this is being politicized, whether Nifong and his group are just playing the public. He might have rushed out prematurely with information about this, responding to criticism that the DA's Office moves too slowly."
Black said in a prepared statement that "any act of sexual violence is intolerable," and she vowed to prosecute such offenses "to the fullest extent of the law" if elected.
But Black added that she wasn't privy to details of the lacrosse investigation and could not comment specifically. In addition, Black said public statements about the case might present a conflict of interest for her.
"If my campaign is successful, I may end up handling this case and I don't want to jeopardize my ability to do so effectively and fairly by commenting without all the facts in hand," the candidate said in her statement.
I agree. A few of these neighbors are also likely witnesses for Nifong, and appear to have an agenda.
Nifong: Defense Attorneys 'Don't Know What My Timeline Is'
UPDATED: 1:19 pm EDT May 3, 2006
DURHAM, N.C. -- Within the next couple of weeks, a second set of DNA test results could be back and a third Duke lacrosse player could be indicted in connection with rape allegations made by an exotic dancer.
It was back to business Wednesday for Durham County's lead prosecutor, who held off opponents in Tuesday's primary election to remain district attorney.
Mike Nifong, who received 45 percent of the vote, has been at the center of a media storm surrounding allegations that the dancer was raped and beaten by three members of Duke University's men's lacrosse team at a party in March.
Members of the Durham community, as well as defense attorneys representing lacrosse players, have criticized the district attorney, saying he spoke too soon and too publicly about key facts in the investigation, and that he was pushing the investigation forward for political gain.
In recent weeks, however, Nifong has remained relatively silent about the investigation, but told WRAL on Wednesday that he feels as strongly now about prosecuting the case now as he did when the allegations were first made.
"I'm confident a sexual assault took place in that house," Nifong said, echoing a statement he made earlier on in the investigation.
Nifong also spoke of reaction to the case, saying much of what has been published has been negative. He said much of that reaction is not based on fact and pointed to details of recent legal filings filed by defense attorney Kirk Osborn, who represents Reade Seligmann -- one of two players charged with rape.
"By leaking things out like this, they can keep the case in the headlines -- see all these trucks that are still around here waiting for something to happen -- and kind of frame the case their own way," Nifong said. "And say thinks like, 'according to my timeline' -- which of course, they don't know what my timeline is."
On Monday, Osborn filed several motions, including one that called for Nifong to recuse himself from the case. Osborn wrote that the district attorney has ignored facts that will clear Seligmann, such as time-stamped photos of the party, cell phone records and ATM surveillance photos, and was using the investigation to bolster his chances for election.
Last month, defense attorneys also publicly stated that DNA samples taken from 46 Duke lacrosse athletes cleared the players, but Nifong hinted on Wednesday that there may be more to the DNA tests than defense attorneys are sharing.
"The fact they're making statements about what reports are saying, and not actually showing the reports, should in and of itself raise some red flags," Nifong said.
Shortly after Nifong received the DNA test results from the State Bureau of Investigation, he ordered a second set of more sophisticated tests that the SBI crime lab was not certified to perform.
In Wednesday's interview with WRAL, Nifong said the tests were ordered because the SBI suggested them.
Nifong also said the case could go to trial as early as the fall, but said he expected a trial next spring because of all the motions that are expected to be filed in the case.
LOL!
I agree. A few of these neighbors are also likely witnesses for Nifong, and appear to have an agenda.
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I do not understand what they can testifiy as it concerns the two guys indicted.
I guess they can say the kids throw wild parties, but what does that have to do with rape?
My take on the reports of screaming (after doing a google search) is what was heard and reported by neighbors was the screaming done by both sides (Kim & some of the Lacrosse team members)at one another.
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