Posted on 06/15/2006 2:22:31 AM PDT by abb
In the early days of the Duke lacrosse rape case, Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong's public statements appear to have contradicted certain facts in his own files.
After an escort service dancer said three men raped her at a lacrosse party, Nifong talked frequently with national and local reporters -- 50 to 70 interviews consuming 40 hours of his time, Nifong estimated. Nifong then went quiet in early April, refusing most interview requests.
A comparison of his words with documents that Nifong gave defense lawyers show that Nifong made what appear to be misstatements about condom use, a purported struggle and a 911 call made by a second dancer, among other things.
Nifong said the assailants might have used condoms; the accuser told an emergency-room nurse none were used, according to a defense filing. Nifong described a violent attack in which the accuser was choked and struggled to breathe; the accuser told a nurse she wasn't choked, the filing said.
Defense lawyers have filed some of the documents in court and characterized others, such as the medical exam, in affidavits.
Nifong declined through an assistant to answer questions Wednesday.
"Either he knew what the facts were and misstated them, or he was making them up," said James Coleman, a Duke law professor who has publicly requested that Nifong remove himself from the case. "Whether he acted knowing they were false, or if he was reckless, it doesn't matter in the long run. This is the kind of stuff that causes the public to lose confidence in the justice system."
(Excerpt) Read more at newsobserver.com ...
Nice to see that the "professionals" have caught up with us laymen!
P.S. You handle, while probably accurate, is a real downer.
DukeLax Ping - New Filing Today!!!
http://www.newsobserver.com/1185/story/450970.html
Filing questions whether Nifong read records
Defense lawyers in the Duke lacrosse case filed court papers today that question whether District Attorney Mike Nifong had read the accuser's medical records before he gave dozens of interviews describing the case on national media.
"On March 29, 2006, Mr. Nifong claimed to have read a medical report that, according to discovery, was not printed until March 30, 2006, or retrieved by law enforcement pursuant to Mr. Nifong's own subpoena until April 5, 2006," wrote Joseph V. Cheshire V and Bradley Bannon, lawyers for lacrosse player David Evans.
Nifong presented a subpoena to Duke Hospital on March 21 requesting the medical records and rape examination of the accuser, who said that three men raped her at a Duke lacrosse party on March 14.
On March 27, Nifong began giving a series of interviews to the national and local media - 50 to 70 interviews consuming 40 hours of his time, according to his own estimate.
Nifong repeatedly said the medical exam showed the woman had been raped in a bathroom in the house at 610 N. Buchanan Blvd.
"There's no doubt in my mind that she was raped and assaulted at this location," Nifong said March 29 on Fox News. "My reading of the report of the emergency room nurse would indicate that some type of sexual assault did in fact take place," Nifong told WRAL on March 29.
Evans' lawyers said that time stamps on the medical records show that Duke Hospital printed out the medical records on March 30, and that police picked the records up on April 5. The time-stamped records were among 1,278 pages of documents that Nifong gave to defense lawyers, as required by state law.
Today, they asked a judge to make Nifong provide any notes or reports from the medical exam he might have seen before April 5.
Another lie exposed! Nifong is incredibly stupid.
My theory that Nifong didn't read anything gains a little more credit!
Calling Jezebelle and/or any other legal types: Is this a smoking gun or is there a reasonable explanation????
How can the man remain the DA? It is totally unbelievable to me!
"I didn't do it! You didn't see me do it! You can't prove a thing!"
The police didn't even pick up the records until April 5th? For an assault that occurred on March 14th?
What are the dates on those warrants & PC affidavits again?
>>Evans' lawyers said that time stamps on the medical records show that Duke Hospital printed out the medical records on March 30, and that police picked the records up on April 5. The time-stamped records were among 1,278 pages of documents that Nifong gave to defense lawyers, as required by state law.
Today, they asked a judge to make Nifong provide any notes or reports from the medical exam he might have seen before April 5.
Nifong could not immediately be reached for comment.<<
Another quote from the above article. The defense is going to shove this down Nifong's throat in frequent motions, until someone slaps him up side the head, and takes this case away from him.
http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/0405061duke4.html
The second warrant affidavit signed 3/27 by Himan.
Says they have already obtained the Duke medical records by subpoena and describes what they supposedly say.
I read one page, and I'm quite certain that the Lacrosse team members in no way said to her "sweetheart you can't leave" . No freakin' way! A drugged out, drunk whore!!! AAARRRH!!
I'm taking a deep breath now....
It looks as if Liefong took parts of many different statements by Crystal and inferred to the media that these were documented facts. Egregious conduct.
This is key. The defense must somehow know for sure that Nifong and Himan didn't have the medical report before they signed the affadavit. Good lawyers NEVER ask questions that they don't already know the answers to...
ROBERTS: She's taking steps on her own, but her head is down and she gets into the car slumped over that same way. Slumped is a good..good word to use.
Kim's new version has the AV walking back to the car with her head down.... The AV gets into the car.
What happened to passed out and carried? :-)
Nifong and Himan probably got a quick summary ahead of time verbally and just went with that, not realizing it wouldn't quite match the actual documents.
"Medical records and interviews that were obtained by subpoena revealed the victim had signs, symptoms, and injuries consistent with being raped and sexually assaulted vaginaly and anally."
Was she fiddling in her purse??....that could produce a "slump image".
Maybe Roberts has multiple personality disorder. She can't remember what her other personalities have already said. She's going to start calling herself Sybil soon.
She can't even remember if her last name is Roberts, or Pittman.
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