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Nifong: Alleged Attack May Have Lasted Just Minutes

POSTED: 3:37 pm EDT September 22, 2006
UPDATED: 4:03 pm EDT September 22, 2006

DURHAM, N.C. -- Three Duke lacrosse players took five to ten minutes to rape and sexually assault a woman hired to perform as a stripper at a team party, and not the 30 minutes she originally described to investigators, a prosecutor said Friday.

"When something happens to you that is really awful, it can seem like it takes place longer than it actually takes," District Attorney Mike Nifong said.

Nifong repeatedly stated during Friday's hearing that the accuser will testify at the trial.

Nifong's comments came as Superior Court Judge W. Osmond Smith III denied a defense request that prosecutors provide a detailed accounting of the alleged assault, including the exact time, place and type of sexual act the accuser said each defendant committed.

A grand jury has indicted three lacrosse players - Reade Seligmann, 20; Collin Finnerty, 19; and David Evans, 23 - on charges of rape, kidnapping and sexual offense.

The accuser, a student at nearby North Carolina Central University, told police she was raped in a bathroom by three men at a March 13 off-campus party. Defense attorneys have strongly proclaimed the players' innocence.

Kirk Osborn, who represents Seligmann, said the defense needed the so-called "bill of particulars" because the accuser has told several different versions of the alleged assault, and his client has a right to know which version prosecutors will present at trial. In search and arrest warrants issued early in the investigation, police stated the accuser told investigators she was assaulted for 30 minutes.

Nifong said he is not required to state the exact time of the alleged attack, but offered that authorities believe it took place between 11:30 p.m. on March 13, when the accuser arrived at the party, and 12:55 a.m. on March 14, when police arrived and found no one at the house.

"Out of his client's whole life, we have given him an hour and a half that he has to account for," Nifong said.

The timing is crucial to Osborn, who again pledged Friday to present an alibi defense for Seligmann. He said the then-sophomore made eight calls on his cell phone between 12:05 a.m. and 12:14 a.m., when he called a cab company for a ride. The cab took Seligmann to an ATM, a fast-food restaurant, and finally back to his dorm at 12:46 a.m.

"When is the exact time this occurred, because we have accounted for our time," Osborn said.

Friday's hearing was the first since Smith was appointed to take over the case, and it was scheduled to continue Friday afternoon. During the morning session, defense lawyers again complained about the slow pace with which they said Nifong is sharing evidence.

"There is a pattern that has developed ... that we don't get discovery unless a court date is set and we're here before a judge," said defense attorney Brad Bannon, who represents defendant David Evans.

Before the hearing began, Nifong gave defense lawyers 615 pages of evidence, a compact disc and a cassette tape. Prosecution evidence must be shared with the defense under North Carolina's discovery laws.

Nifong said the evidence provided Friday included much of what was requested by defense lawyers, who had asked for handwritten notes from police officers involved with the case, reports outlining procedures used at the labs who tested the DNA of the players and notes from a mental health facility where police took the accuser after the party.

Nifong responded by telling Smith he is now personally handling discovery issues in his office.

"We're providing in good faith what we can in these circumstances," Nifong said. "Despite the feelings of some people, this is not the only case in Durham."