Posted on 05/15/2006 7:14:12 AM PDT by pissant
DURHAM - A Durham grand jury is scheduled to meet today, and the session could mean new charges in the investigation of a reported rape at a Duke lacrosse team party.
Two of the team's players were indicted in April on charges of first degree rape, first degree sex offense and first degree kidnapping. They are accused of assaulting an escort service dancer in a bathroom of a house at 610 N. Buchanan Blvd. Their lawyers say the men are innocent, and lawyers representing dozens of team members say that no sex or assault occurred at the March 13 party.
But the woman says she was attacked by three men, and Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong said he has been working on bringing charges against a third person.
WHAT WILL HAPPEN TODAY? If Nifong decides to submit the case, police investigators and possibly other witnesses will try to convince grand jurors in a secret session that the state has probable cause to bring a case forward. Grand jurors will hear only the prosecution's side of the case. The standard required for a true bill of indictment is far lower than the beyond-a-reasonable-doubt standard required for a conviction.
IF INDICTMENTS ARE ISSUED, WHEN WILL THEY BECOME PUBLIC? On April 17, a judge ordered the indictments in the lacrosse case sealed. The names of the players who were indicted were not released until 5 a.m. the next day when the players surrendered at the Durham County jail. If Nifong again requests that the indictments be sealed, the law allows a judge to keep them secret until the person is arrested or appears in court.
WHEN WILL ALL THE EVIDENCE BE REVEALED? State law requires prosecutors to turn over all of their case files to defense lawyers, but nothing requires the evidence to be turned over to the public. In open court hearings, lawyers often discuss some of the evidence, but the state's case may not be revealed until trial. No trial dates have been set. When a report on the DNA testing is complete, Nifong is required by law to turn it over to all 46 members of the lacrosse team who submitted DNA samples.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? The cases against Reade William Seligmann, 20, of Essex Fells, N.J., and Collin Finnerty, 19, of Garden City, N.Y., are moving forward. Finnerty has a court date in June. Seligmann is scheduled to appear in court Thursday. His attorney, Kirk Osborn, has filed a series of motions challenging Nifong's handling of the case and asking a judge to bar the prosecutor from further involvement.
The victim is going to testify under oath as sworn evidence. Are the defendants' other than in front of the microphone in front of the media?
The alumni base is very jittery about this whole thing. THe rumours of a very low yield rate for incoming freshman are strong but only time will tell. Frankly, many parents will feel the same way you do and the real problem is when students are deciding between schools, the first question they will ask is if just how risky and dangerous it will be for Duke students in Durham - - not a good questions when recruiting students. Puts Duke ar a serious disadvantage.
what are you arguing exactly? that the woman didn't say she was brutally raped vaginally, orally, and anally?
the DistrictAttorney has spoken more than any in history.
70 interviews that made the public think this was terrible, horrible crime.
i don't get the argument, unless you're pulling somebodies chains
In other words Ted is still stuck on stupid, :^)!
So you don't believe OJ's glove or hair under his cap was nothing?
What's the percentage of early admission is at Duke? Those students are committed.
What kills Duke is this thing occured right around the time the school is mailing out acceptance letters. They couldn't mail out more after April 1st. I imagine the accepted student yield is going to be much lower than expected this year.
Duke better expand the waiting list this year. And all this because Brodhead doesn't have a spine!
The victim is going to testify under oath as sworn evidence. Are the defendants' other than in front of the microphone in front of the media?
I'm sure she is going to be totally honest and forthright.
why would anyone believe this woman?
It's not like she's Mary Poppins. I don't get it.
OJ is over with. We are talking about the Duke players fool.
I hear Evans does it with a rape hoody and Groucho Mark mask.
"It's not like she's Mary Poppins."
And who are they? One defendant assaulted another man who he thought was gay right?
These days many admitted students send checks to more than one school to reserve their seat in the freshman class. That was unheard of 10 years ago but is commonplace now.
Because of this trend there is a phenomenon called the 'summer melt' that causes sleep loss for all the admissions offices.
If they don't get Durham and Duke out of the spotlight soon the summer melt is going to turn into a meltdown.
I know OJ is over with. But they did find DNA evidence did they not from tissue under her fake nail?
She is a "victim?"
She, her parents, aunt, cousin, the other $tripper Kim, Je$$ie Jack$on, $Willie Gary$, her pastor, city council, mayor, city manager, DA, Trinity Park neighbors, activists, poets, poet activists, etc., have given interviews, versus one accused LAX player and defense attorneys.
Who cares, this isn't about OJ.
Is there no place between here and a trial that Nifong can be shown to lack "something more", "something in his back pocket", "something he knows that we don't", or whatever those like Ted Willams, Norm Early, and Nancy/Wendy/Lisa continue to say ad naseum?
And they said the same thing about Linda Tripp.
in the OJ trial there was a lot more evidence that that
there was some much evidence. it took a year to go through all the evidence in that case. OJs DNA was all over the place
intermixed with both murder victims at the crime scene and at his house.
inadvertently, you are making the point that if this terrible beating & gang rape & strangulation occured for 30 minutes by 3 different drunk men: there would be a whole lot more biological evidence. there was evidence of sex with her boyfriend 3 weeks earlier, if you believe that.
that wasn't even forced. i doubt he was try to kill her or that he was at a party drunk. or if she was throbbing in the middle of his living room naked.
BUTT, there's evidence of the sex. odd, don't you think ?
I just read a good article about that nail and DNA on #1089.
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