Posted on 08/24/2007 7:23:21 AM PDT by SkyPilot
ORLANDO, Fla. - Former astronaut Lisa Nowak, accused of attacking a romantic rival, asked a judge Friday to let her remove her electronic monitoring ankle bracelet, saying that it cuts her ankle and gets in the way of her military boot laces.
Former astronaut Lisa Nowak enters the courtroom before a hearing at the Orange County courthouse in Orlando, Fla., Friday, Aug. 24, 2007. Nowak, accused of attacking a romantic rival, arrived in court Friday with a swarm of photographers snapping away as she was escorted to a private room to prepare. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Nowak promised to abide by all court orders if the GPS monitoring device is removed, including not having any contact with Air Force Capt. Colleen Shipman, the woman she is accused of pepper spraying in an airport parking lot.
Shipman's attorney fought the request.
On the witness stand, Shipman told the judge she is still afraid of Nowak.
"When I'm home alone and there's nobody there with me, it is a comfort," she said of the Nowak's monitoring bracelet. She also acknowledged, however, that she had visited her boyfriend in Nowak's hometown of Houston several times since Nowak's arrest. She didn't say if that boyfriend was the same shuttle pilot.
Nowak, a 44-year-old Navy pilot, has pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted kidnapping, battery and burglary with assault.
Her attorney, Donald Lykkebak, said he planned to ask Circuit Court Judge Marc L. Lubet at the hearing Friday to throw out evidence in the case, including an interview Nowak gave to police and items found during a search of her car.
Nowak had told the detectives that she and Shipman were vying for the affection of the same space shuttle pilot and that she confronted Shipman in an Orlando International Airport parking lot because she wanted to know "where she stands."
She is accused of attacking Shipman with pepper spray and trying to jump into her vehicle. Police say Nowak also had a duffel bag with a steel mallet, 4-inch knife and a BB gun.
Lykkebak contends police searched Nowak's car without her permission or a warrant. He said in additional court filings that she gave the interview under duress — after being held for three hours, deprived of sleep and a phone call and unadvised of her constitutional rights. The interview persisted, Lykkebak said, despite Nowak saying "Should I have a lawyer?" three times.
Nowak also planned to give her first public statement after the hearing, he said.
During questioning about the monitoring bracelet, Nowak said it was bulky and painful, and has kept her out of public places fearing its alarm. She said it also interferes with her ability to exercise — a requirement for a Navy officer, and inhibits her ability to drive.
"I can do weights. I don't have other suitable aerobic exercises," Nowak said. "There's no specific exercise required, but staying shape is a requirement of the military."
Nowak also said she has to change the batteries every 12-15 hours — at least twice a day. She pays for the bracelet, which costs $105 a week and about $3,000 so far.
Assistant state attorney Pamela Davis suggested Nowak could do other exercises, and has been able to bathe despite the inconvenience.
Kepler Funk, an attorney for Shipman, called the bracelet the most important condition of Nowak's freedom.
"She is scared of Ms. Nowak," Funk said of his client. "Right now there is probable cause to believe Ms. Nowak committed a crime against Ms. Shipman that's punishable by life in prison. ... The only comfort she's had for the past six months is knowing that someone has been monitoring Ms. Nowak's every move."
First let me say, having read you bio, you are correct in your opinion concerning some of the “reasons” and “reasoning” that show up on FR.
I am not sure that I caught your reason why we need women in the astronaut program. If the basis is that she is a Navy pilot, that would not carry much weight with someone who believes that women should not be navy pilots, or in any other position that might bring them into a possible combat situation. As I stated before, having men and women, thrown together in (especially) very stressful situations, leads to complications that are unnecessary. I take the defense of this country very seriously, which leaves social experimentation out, way out.
I had a bad day....
... but I'm feeling much better now, Your Honor!
////
Former astronaut Lisa Nowak testifies during a
hearing at the Orange County courthouse
in Orlando, Fla., Friday, Aug. 24, 2007. Nowak,
accused of attacking a romantic rival, asked a
judge Friday to let her remove her electronic
monitoring ankle bracelet, saying that it cuts
her ankle and gets in the way of her military boot laces.
(AP Photo/Red Huber,POOL)
Not sure I follow your first paragraph. (Take it to FreepMail if necessary.) But my argument is not that we need women in the astronaut program just to have women there. My argument is that there are PLENTY of talented female scientists who should be able to compete their way into the program if they so wished. There IS a disproportionate number of military officers in the astronaut corps and that needs to be rectified.
Maybe they make one that’s in a form that she is a bit more used to. Like a diaper.
She is not a pilot. She is a Naval Flight Officer.
This deputy prosecutor is not very bright. If she is going to try the case, I like the defendants chances.
She's stationed at the same base where my daughter and her handsome Navy pilot husband are. They can see the building she reports to ever day from their home. Fortunately, she is not allowed into the general population of the base, but kept in the building....
with all the scary paraphernalia she had in the car, it's pretty clear her victim is lucky to be alive.
And we're supposed to feel sorry for Nowak because she has to wear the ankle bracelet? They made Martha Stewart wear one. Don't know who she was a danger to.
Nowak should be thankful she's not where she should be = jail.
“with all the scary paraphernalia she had in the car, it’s pretty clear her victim is lucky to be alive.”
exactly.
Colleen Shipman has every right to make a big deal out of this.
Nowak had a very interesting kit with her. Some people might get the funny notion she was planning on dismembering and disposing of a body.
vetsvette, I totally agree. Shipman needs to grow up and stop acting like a silly damsel in distress in order to gain sympathy from the boyfriend. The Orlando Prosecutor and police need to spend more time trying to catch real killers and less time seeking publicity. Destroying an astronaut is their real purpose it makes for better head lines and more pats on the back.
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