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.
No clue as to what info he really has....he did say he has not yet received Evans statements made to police and some other things I don't recall.
I hope he doesn't hold his breath waiting for a reply....
Maybe, but the guys would probably remember if the nails were unbroken or unpolished. If unpolished, that would be something.
Dan: I hope for the criminal justice system Nifong has something more! Owes it to the public to say he has more.
Question: Will Nancy Grace be on Aruba again tonight? LOL
It's also the magic lube that leaves no trace...
Abrams says he hopes Nifong has additional evidence for the sake of the JUSTICE SYSTEM.
He goes through the mustache, the DNA, Seligmann's alibi, and the stuff that's not debatable.
He says Nifong owes it to the state of NC to say he has more and Susan says that Nifong also needs to say "I've looked at what the defense has and need to go forward anyway".
Commercial - more of Evans press conference coming up.
Define "Tissue" was the issue with what the media put out. I kept thinking the sticky which is "tissue like". When I heard the attorney...I said "no"....It's something bigger than the little sticky.
I've watched her once in two years; she makes my skin itch.
I missed the presser...and Judge Napalitano...what did he say??
Has he been "for" the hooker....or "for" the players??
The Duke lacrosse players are so smart the invented a special undetectable lube to use in gang rapes. :-)
I'm not sure how the rules for a Grand Jury are here in NC. I served on a GJ in Santa Clara County, California and we only considered one case. This GJ meets regularly.
Howlin, do you know? Are GJ members allowed to watch news or discuss cases under indictment?
Most of the time, I have to agree with you.
I used to have so much respect for law enforcement. I naively trusted the authorities --most especially cops, judges, and juries to come up with...well, justice.
But some nasty personal experiences (fortunately of relatively minor consequence for me and mine), and cases like this latest truly ABSURD indictment of David Evans, have soured me on our law enforcement and justice systems. (Thanks to Karl Rove for the word-of-the-day, "soured.")
All too often, police do not pursue real offenders, but rather innocent citizens who just happen to be convenient targets for ticket quotas; or much worse, innocent citizens who happen to be in the crosshairs of a prosecutor conducting a political witchhunt.
And I no longer trust courts --including judges and juries-- to pursue justice.
So instead of teaching my sons to look at police as friends of the innocent, or to our courts for justice, I've sadly had to teach them something very different.
And that is this: My sons, if you're stopped by authorities, for whatever reason, even if you're 100% innocent, don't volunteer any information.
There's too great a chance that --just as you say-- "Cops/prosecutors will twist, misconstrue, and lie about what you said to them if is serves their purpose. You don't talk to them and there is nothing to twist,misconstrue or lie about."
Abrams report: Susan Filan looks ready to cry with outrage. Norm getting slapped around by other panelists.
"It's also the magic lube that leaves no trace..."
They did that in the chem lab too.
That's what I've been saying. They should have never let them in the door - just given them each $50 and said, "Thanks for showing up ladies, but we've cancelled the party. Here's something for your trouble. Goodnight."
Poor Greta....she has been sent to the Mexico/USA border to talk about President Bush's speech tonight...
And then THIS happens....she must be really mad that she can't at least be in the studio and do her whole show on this...lol
Out of consideration for their victim, they used that new warming gel, disappearing version.
I find her and her hate very distasteful too, but I am checking her out lately just to see what her comments, or lack of them, about this particular case is. I would NEVER hire her as my attorney even for a traffic ticket....ever.
Evans statement? With no attorney present? He wasn't under arrest at the time and unless he SIGNED a waiver, it's worthless.
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