Posted on 06/18/2006 6:14:18 AM PDT by tlb
The prosecutor insists his rape case is strong. One big problem: the facts thus far.
...court documents in the case increasingly suggest that Durham County District Attorney Mike Nifong had very little evidence upon which to indict three players for rape. Indeed, the available evidence is so thin or contradictory that it seems fair to ask what Nifong could have been thinking when he confidently told reporters that there was "no doubt" in his mind that the woman had been raped at the party held by the lacrosse team.
Nifong is described by some lawyers as an adversary who gets dug in—and won't budge. But Nifong's motives may have been political as well. He was six weeks away from an election when the Duke case came up. Durham voters are almost evenly divided between black and white. One of Nifong's opponents was black and the other was white, but the white lawyer was much better known in the community, thanks to winning a high-profile murder case. (That opponent, former assistant D.A. Freda Black, became a bitter enemy of Nifong's after, she claims, Nifong fired her.) Nifong promised black voters that he would not let the Duke case drop. He indicted two of the players two weeks before the election. He won narrowly, taking a larger share of the black vote than the other white candidate.
Meanwhile, the players and their families are lying low, trying to figure out how they can get their reputations back. Finnerty and Seligmann are underclassmen and may be able to transfer to another college and still play lacrosse if the charges are dropped. Evans has already started to pay a price in the real world. He was supposed to begin a good job after graduation, but the job offer was withdrawn.
(Excerpt) Read more at msnbc.msn.com ...
Try here
When Richard Pennington became Police Chief in Atlanta in 2004, an audit he commissioned found thousands of crime incidents were "downgraded, underreported, and discarded". I think the same thing is going on in Durham, and continued focus on Durham LE/DA shenanigans threaten to expose the corruption that permeates the place.
http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/South/02/20/atlanta.police.audit.ap/index.html
Thanks, I missed it ... I would have remembered reading it.
This is the brother-in-law?
http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:xpeC7nSpYhoJ:www.newsobserver.com/122/story/429338.html+%22diamond+girls%22+durham+owner&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=3&client=firefox-a
The episode started at the Diamond Girls club on Angier Avenue in Durham. According to Larry W. Jones, the owner of Diamond Girls, the woman appeared at the club that night and "tried out," giving lap dances to a few men.
Thank you.
My apologies. I'm getting my information mixed up. George Williams is the ARCHITECT of the proposed place, Jones is the owner, and City Councilan Howard is the brother-in-law of Williams. Still a connection to city/county government, and still an unethical conflict of interest.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1647375/posts?page=650#636
In reference to City MGR's Baker's brother in law.
Read the court transcript from the first setting. You have very serious crimes and the handling of that case and the Judge spends most of the time discussing the privacy regarding the phone! It doesn't look. There is an inordinate amount of concern for the privacy of the phone owner or others that called or were called from those phones.
STEPHENS: All right. I'll hear you, then, on -- have you at least had a chance to look at his request? As far as his notice, whatever his notice.....
NIFONG: I have, your honor.
OSBORN: On May 2nd, I delivered to Mr. Nifong a proposed order regarding the seized cellular telephone that is property of the complainant in this case. It's important to get experts access to that phone immediately, and HOPEFULLY THE PHONE HAS NOT BEEN TAMPERED WITH. But if we don't get an expert to it who knows what he's doing, the evidence in that phone can be lost. And it's important to do it immediately.
There's an affidavit from our expert attached to our motion setting forth why it is necessary to get to that phone. We certainly would be willing to have our expert and an expert from the state meet and do that together or --- but anyway, it needs to be done. The phone needs to be charged. We need to get the phone number, we need to find the service provider.
And all of the other information is in the phone itself. And that was carried by the complainant that night. It was canceled, the service provider was canceled the next day. So we need to get the number, if we can get access to the call detail sheets of the service provider. And that would enable us to see who she was talking with that day.
(snip)
NIFONG: I would wonder what evidence he thinks that he's entitled to would be on that telephone.
(snip)
****MY COMMENTS: Earlier it sure sounds like Stephens has no knowledge of evidence. It's the first setting, why would he? Nifong doesn't. Police experts don't. BUT, read on:
STEPHENS: Well, IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING that this may be a phone that actually was a third party's phone or could -- or was it -- do you know whether or not it was her cell phone or ...
NIFONG: I do not know right off hand.
****MY COMMENTS: We are supposed to believe that in the biggest case of Nifong's life, he doesn't know fundmental information about critical evidence in the case? Remember, Nifong filed an order, a critical request with the NC SBI to get the DNA testing placed ahead of all other testing in the entire State. It was granted. But, his own people don't take the time to find out if it's the Victim's phone or
a Pimp's that was drug running in Nifong's Durham. Or he didn't wonder if she had called another
group (post rape time) and verified that she would be there for a 3:00 am bachelor party and that all that would come out and bite him in the National Media?
Read on - Stephens already KNOWS about the phone; remember Nifong says HE DOESN'T KNOW
STEPHENS: So we may have third, or fourth parties who have some privacy interest in this themselves.
NIFONG: Conceivably.
STEPHENS: Whatever comes from this, the court would like to review that in chambers to make sure that, frankly, something that should not -- has no reason to be made public unless there's some need for it or some legitimate reason for it to protect the interests, privacy interests of others who are not involved in this.
(snip)
STEPHENS: But they'll be -- I want a protective order in regards to that information that would protect the contents of it, as far as being released in any way other than to the court.
(snip)
STEPHENS: Right, but based on my comments today, I want to make sure that you, again, there's a -- it includes protective order for ...
****MY COMMENTS: You can read it, but it seems like an inordinate concern for the Privacy of the phone data when such serious crimes are before the court.
One final quote near the end, and I think this is unusual in official court proceedings:
OSBORN: Well we just want to make sure, your honor, that all of the things that have been generated be preserved and that we get a chance to see them pursuant to statute, we're entitled to look through all of the law enforcement files and we just WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT NOTHING DISAPPEARS.
And I think you can assure that with your order that nothing be destroyed.
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0605/18/lol.03.html
My apoligies everyone, I need another cup of coffee. My mind just isn't working this morning. Councilman Howard Clement is the insider who is helping the adult entertainment industry, and his brother-in-law is George Williams, the architect for Jones, the owner of the "nightclub".
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1647375/posts?page=650#636
Forgive me my ignorance, but perhaps you should submit an affidavit establshing your innocence. Or maybe get a law license and see if you can get sanctioned faster than the prosecutor in this case.
Any more Univision yesterday and I would've been on the first flight to Brazil.
Susan Filan on MSNBC minutes ago (6-19):
She has reviewed all discovery provided to the Defense team.
Mike Nifong is trapped. He just doesn't know how to get out.
;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;
B.S. He counted on the hate and racism by the Durham locals. He counted on that Durham Jury. How else do you explain a Distric Attorney meeting with a Hate Group (Black Panthers) to discuss the case?
He didn't count on him losing control of the media. Judge Stephens is on the hot seat as we approach Thursday's trial.
What does Stephens do? National democratic feminists have reviewed the entire Discovery file and say that her statements don't match the Medical findings and don't match the state's only witness - Kim Pittman.
No problem. Thanks for the clarification. :)
Where there are 'hootchie' places, and Durham seems to have a lot of them, there are drugs.
The last things these drug lords want is a spotlight shining into the crevices of Durham.
Crystal better lay low if she wants to see her 30th birthday.
maggief re: Kim's myspace account. She has one friend listed as kamper. Click on his picture (the cartoon one) and when his site comes up click on "view all of kamper's friends." What is your impression of his friends?
IMO, by far the single more arrogant / ignorant (and revealing) statement made thus far in this case...
Look, I think we should be careful. We know Nifong is reading blogs, maybe the AV.
By using terms like hootchie, we are probably giving them another way to claim she was assaulted!
I can hear it now, Signs, symptoms, and injuries consistent ......
The New Black Panthers are in control of NIFONG.
ooops...
more = most
From what I saw of him last time I think he will punt.
That meeting with the Black Panthers is something that cannot be explained in my book. Nifong is not mayor. He's not the ambassador. He has special obligations and limitations that others are not encumbered by.
No one can adequated explain a DA using proper judgement meeting privately with a registered Hate group about a crime where individuals have been indicted by have not stood trial yet.
thanks
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.