Posted on 03/12/2004 3:33:59 AM PST by Therapist
DENVER (Reuters) - Colorado's highest court ruled on Thursday that the woman who accuses basketball star Kobe Bryant (news) of rape must testify about her sexual history in a closed pre-trial hearing despite prosecutors' efforts to limit the scope of questioning.
Prosecutors had asked the Colorado Supreme Court to overturn a ruling by the trial judge in Eagle County that gave defense lawyers permission to question the 19-year-old about her sexual history for a period covering about a year before she said she was raped.
Eagle County District Attorney Mark Hurlbert said in a statement; "We continue to have great concern about the humiliation the victim is being asked to endure at the hands of the criminal justice system."
He also said future sexual assault victims may not report a crime out of fear of being humiliated on the witness stand.
All along prosecutors have said the defense was on a "fishing expedition" and that Colorado's rape shield law protects sexual assault victims from being questioned in court about their sexual history.
The Los Angeles Laker player's defense lawyers Hal Haddon and Pamela Mackey want to get the woman on the stand to ask her questions about her sexual history and mental health problems in a bid to cast doubt on her credibility.
Bryant, 25, who is married with a 13-month-old daughter, has denied he raped the woman, and instead has characterized the encounter at a posh Colorado resort where the woman worked as consensual sex, which he sincerely regrets.
The defense in court filings has said it is relevant to ask the accuser about her having sex 15 hours after the time she said Bryant raped her last year because prosecutors want to present evidence she suffered from trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder after the incident.
The defense said it is also appropriate to ask about the woman's sexual partners just before and just after the time she said Bryant raped her to help determine the source of injuries to her genital area.
And the defense also argued that Colorado's rape shield law allows questioning in certain situations and doing it behind closed doors would protect the woman's privacy.
The accuser's attorney John Clune earlier this month said the defense's claim that the woman had sex so soon after she said she was raped was "patently false."
The high court's order means she will probably have to appear at a pre-trial hearing later this month.
"The people are prepared to go forward," Hurlbert said in his statement.
Prosecutors were concerned after defense attorneys started asking witnesses during pre-trial hearings about claimed sexual contacts the woman had between the summer of 2002 and August of last year. The 19-year-old woman said Bryant raped her on June 30, 2003.
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