Bryant denial made accuser 'sick to her stomach,' friend says

CNN ^ | July 21, 2003 | CNN

[Recourse]

EAGLE, Colorado (CNN) --Hearing NBA all-star Kobe Bryant deny the sexual assault charge filed against him made his accuser "sick to her stomach," a friend of the woman said Monday.

Bryant, an all-star guard for the Los Angeles Lakers, has been charged with one count of sexual assault. He has steadfastly maintained his innocence, and after the charge was announced Friday, he admitted having sex with his 19-year-old accuser but said the encounter was consensual.

[cyncooper]

The DA never should have filed if he knew her recent mental history with her problems.

Unless, of course, he has proof beyond a reasonable doubt that a crime was committed. And he says he does.

[cyncooper]

When, as here, it is conceeded that sex occurred between the accuser and the accused, just what useful information do you believe that a rape kit can yield?

She was checked for signs of assault in addition to the sexual contact evidence. Bruising, lacerations, blood, and so on. It has been said the girl was indeed bruised and clothes torn, but that's via the media and I'll wait for actual evidence to be presented to draw a conclusion.

[TheOtherOne]

Here is my thinking:

She comes to the room. They engage in sex. Kobe, is not looking for a relationship and asks her to leave. She snaps. He tries to calm her down, and get her out of his room. She gets loud and he has to push her out.

She is pissed. She thinks about it some more, and instead of another suicide attempt, she comes up with a better plan.

[TheOtherOne]

All of the facts claimed so far fit this scenario...

[Charles H. (The_r0nin)]

Why didn't she tell somebody? She goes home, and spends twelve hours doing.....something. Then, she goes to the cops.

Several reports have her talking about it to some other employees before she left. As for the delay, have you ever know anyone who has been raped? I have. One of them (whose rapist was one of my friends that ADMITTED to me he raped her) never filed a police report, despite all of us encouraging her to do so. Another waited almost 2 days, and almost had to be dragged down to the police station by her best friend (my girlfriend at the time). Both were bona fide rapes (the first was admitted to by the perp; the second had witnesses, as it happened in the back room of a party), and yet both women were in such shock and denial that they didn't want to do anything to remind them of what happened. People don't always react as we would expect them to after a trauma like that.

A long list of studies (my own personal experiences notwithstand) have demonstrated that women often try to wish the experience away, and only after their attempts to ignore it don't work will they seek other remedies.

BTW, do you have anything derrogatory to say about either of the women I know who have been raped? Do you want to question their "mental state" or "trustworthiness" because they didn't report the rapes right away? If so, Freepmail me, so we can meet and do it face-to-face...

[cyncooper]

I would think and hope that most women would run screaming out of that room exactly in the state of (un)dress her attacker caused her to be in just as soon as she had the first opportunity.

Are you kidding?

What?!

[TheOtherOne]

What happened in those two cases, was there any dispute to the facts? Did the perps plea? Were both men found guilty?

[Charles H. (The_r0nin)]

I would think and hope that most women would run screaming out of that room exactly in the state of (un)dress her attacker caused her to be in just as soon as she had the first opportunity.

See my post to sinkspur at 238. What we hope and what is are two very different things.

[eeriegeno]

Bryant has helped lead the Lakers to three NBA championships in the seven years since he turned pro out of high school. His role model image has added to his popularity with fans, and fellow players have rallied to his defense.

This, of course, is important to his defense.......

[cyncooper]

Well, she was only in the room a reported 20 minutes. It sounds like he did go crazy to me if she shows signs of sex and assault.

How else to describe it?

[SoCal Pubbie]

Acording to at least one report, the D.A. DID NOT know of the 911 calls.

[TheOtherOne]

How else to describe it?

She comes to the room. They engage in sex. Kobe, is not looking for a relationship and asks her to leave. She snaps. He tries to calm her down, and get her out of his room. She gets loud and he has to push her out.

She is pissed. She thinks about it some more, and instead of another suicide attempt, she comes up with a better plan.

What of that story does not fit the facts equally as well as a story about a rape?

[Charles H. (The_r0nin)]

As I mentioned, the first girl (one of my best friends in grad school) never pressed charges. She wanted to pretend that it had never happened. Considering that the guy who did it ADMITTED it (that it was non-consesual, even that he had to hold her down) to me and to several other of his friends, there was NO question about the events at all. We had all known each other for years, and this happened right out of the blue. His excuse was that he had wanted her for years and finally couldn't take being around her with having her. Needless to say, none of us had anything to do with him thereafter.

The second had multiple witnesses to her ordeal, and the perp pled to lesser charges (a deal with the DA that none of us were happy with, though the girl was somewhat relieved that she didn't have to go to trial).

Both cases were clear-cut rape, with not a shred of doubt.

[TheOtherOne]

It accounts for the DNA
It accounts for the 'commotion'
It accounts for the possible ripped cloths
It accounts for the 'woman scorned' response
This story also makes the suicide attempt relevent

[TheOtherOne]

Good at least one perp is in prison. Too bad the other got away.

[Iwo Jima]

But that's not part of a "rape kit," is it? Well, maybe blood, but not bruising, lacerations. I was just asking the other poster what they thought that a "rape kit" consisted of to make sure that my own understanding was correct.

Signs of minor trauma can be indicative of rape, but it can also occur during consensual sex, so that would not be evidence beyond a reasonable doubt. Clothes can be torn by a rapist and also by someone falsely accusing someone of rape -- say, in the 12 hours from the time the accuser left the accused and before she reported the rape to anyone.

You are right that we don't have a lot to go on at this point, but given what we know (or think that we knew), I would not bank on a guilty verdict. It just doesn't seem likely.

[Charles H. (The_r0nin)]

Occam's razor...

[cyncooper]

Why did she go? Nobody forced her to go to his room.

Remember Bryant's reputation that you all say he had at the time? She was asked to bring something hotel related and here he is this NICE celebrity guy and why not just run it over?

I swear I think it is bizarre that so many think that being in a HOTEL means all men are lying in wait to throw the first woman that appears at the door on the bed and he's entitled to do it because what else is a woman to expect.

[TheOtherOne]

Funny, that is what I was thinking.

[cyncooper]

All in twenty minutes, hm?