http://www.newsobserver.com/100/story/505027.html
Nifong defends interview policy
The prosecutor in the Duke lacrosse rape case says he lets others interview the witnesses in cases
Nifong said in court he hadn't heard accuser's account.
Benjamin Niolet, Staff Writer
DURHAM - District Attorney Mike Nifong said Tuesday that the Duke lacrosse case is the first time he has been criticized for his policy of not interviewing witnesses.
"For 27 years, no one has thought it was odd that I had other people do the interviewing," Nifong said in an interview. "For people who have never prosecuted cases to suggest they just can't believe I would do that seems kind of self-serving."
Nifong said in court last week that he had never heard the accuser give her account of the March lacrosse team party where she said she was raped by three Duke lacrosse players. As weaknesses in the prosecutor's case have emerged, the woman's in-court testimony, presumably in which she will name the three defendants, has become a key part of Nifong's case.
But Nifong said hearing the woman tell her story is not the only way to determine whether she is credible. That determination comes from other, general conversations, he said.
"That's how you determine whether or not somebody's trustworthy, I think," Nifong said. "You weren't there when the crime took place, so you cannot know if the person is telling you the truth about the crime or not just based on the account."
After a flurry of media interviews early in the investigation, Nifong has stopped discussing the facts of the case with reporters. But in comments to The News & Observer on Tuesday and to The Associated Press on Monday, Nifong has said more to the media about how he is perceived than he has in months. The statements come a week before Nifong faces an election challenge.
Nifong said that he talked to the accuser Tuesday but that they did not discuss the facts of the case. He said that a prosecutor who hears what a witness has to say risks being called to the witness stand if any inconsistent statements arise.
Durham police investigators have spoken with the woman about the assaults she says happened at a lacrosse team party in March. Nifong has read their reports of her account.
When asked for a response to Nifong's comments, lawyer Joseph B. Cheshire V, an attorney for defendant Dave Evans, said the lacrosse case is different from every other case Nifong has handled. Cheshire said it differs because of Nifong's prominent role in the investigation and his numerous statements to the news media in which he was adamant that a rape occurred, a position Nifong maintains. Attorneys for all three lacrosse players say the woman's story is a lie and no rape or assault happened at the party.
"People need to understand he is the lead investigator and prosecutor, which makes it different than his cases in 27 years. If you're an investigator, it is your duty to talk to witnesses," Cheshire said.
Pressure stepped up
In March the woman, an escort service dancer hired for the off-campus team party, told police she was raped. Nifong ultimately obtained indictments against Evans, 23 of Bethesda, Md.; Collin Finnerty, 20, of Garden City, N.Y.; and Reade Seligmann, 20, of Essex Fells, N.J. Each was charged with rape, kidnapping and a sexual offense. As thousands of pages of evidence have been turned over to the defense, the lawyers have increasingly stepped up the pressure on Nifong as they challenged his early assertions about the case and proclaimed that the evidence does not support -- and in fact refutes -- the woman's story.
Cheshire said the timing of Nifong's comments are related to the Nov. 7 election in which Nifong faces a challenge from a write-in candidate and another candidate who has said he will not serve if elected.
"He is the one who went out and made this case a cause celebre. He did it. No one else did it, and yet he won't even talk to his own witness," Cheshire said. "Now he is trying to justify that right before his own election, which is just what he did right before the primary. Who is suffering? His community and especially these three young men."
Same advice
Nifong said he has heard about statements made on ABC's "Good Morning America" by Kim Roberts, the second dancer hired for the lacrosse party. Roberts said on the program that the accuser said she wanted marks on her body after the two left the party. Nifong would not comment on her statements, but he said he gives all witnesses in his prosecutions the same advice.
"If they want to talk to somebody, they have every right to do that. If you do choose to talk to somebody, make sure you tell the truth because you're going to hear it again," he said.
Staff writer Benjamin Niolet can be reached at (919) 956-2404 or bniolet@newsobserver.com.
"If they want to talk to somebody, they have every right to do that. If you do choose to talk to somebody, make sure you tell the truth because you're going to hear it again," he said."
So, to be credible, Kim has to tell the same story all the time while Crystal can tell any number of stories and still be credible? I hope the defense is taking notes.