Investigator Testifies at Bryant Hearing

EAGLE - The woman who accused Kobe Bryant of rape told police a flirtatious encounter quickly turned ugly when he grabbed her by the neck, bent her over a chair and attacked her, repeatedly asking, "You're not going to tell anybody about this, right?"

The 19-year-old woman was raped after agreeing to go to Bryant's suite at the resort where she worked, Eagle County Sheriff's Detective Doug Winters testified Thursday at a preliminary hearing to determine whether Bryant will stand trial.

She said she told Bryant "no" at least twice and he ignored her, pulling her dress up and her underwear down and raping her from behind.

At one point, the woman told police, Bryant forced her to face him and say "no" when he asked if she was going to tell anyone. After the attack, Bryant made her kiss his penis, Winters said the woman told investigators.

Bryant, 25, has insisted the sex was consensual. He sat at the defense table staring straight at Winters for much of the hearing, hands folded in front of him. Bryant occasionally clenched his jaw, but showed little other reaction.

Though the testimony was graphic, the most explosive statement came from Bryant's own defense attorney when she suggested under cross examination that the woman's injuries would also be "consistent with a person who has had sex with three different men in three days."

That led an angry Judge Frederick Gannett to empty the courtroom and summon the lawyers to his chambers. Gannett was also upset earlier when defense attorney Pamela Mackey said the woman's name four times when asking questions.

The hearing - expected to last only an afternoon - was finally adjourned after more than six hours, an indication the trial could be long and laborious for both sides. Gannett said it would continue next Wednesday, and the district attorney's office said Bryant had to appear.

Winters, the only witness of the afternoon, recounted what the woman told him in an hourlong interview the day after she met Bryant at the resort. It all began with a tour of the hotel on June 30 that led to some flirting. She went back to Bryant's room and showed him a tattoo on her ankle, then turned down his request to join him in the hot tub, Winters said.

Her shift at the front desk was ending and she wanted to go home, he said, and "she was starting to feel a bit uncomfortable."

Winters said she stood up to leave and Bryant gave her a hug that led to some consensual kissing, Winters said.

But when she turned to go, Bryant grabbed her by the neck, pulled up her black dress and raped her against a chair, Winters said. She told investigators she said "no" at least twice, before bursting into tears as the five-minute attack went on.

Bryant wasn't holding her neck so tight she couldn't breathe, Winters said, but enough to control her movement.

Afterward, Bryant told the woman to clean up, Winters said. She fixed her hair, wiped her face and left after again promising to remain silent.

She went back to the front desk to finish up her work and finally left the resort with an unidentified bellman, Winters said. She told him what happened and he urged her to report it, later following her home.

Winters testified that the woman's blood was found on the inside of Bryant's T-shirt, based on DNA tests. The woman told him she had bleeding from the attack, he said.

The prosecution also presented photographs showing vaginal injuries and one of a bruise on the woman's jaw, and a rape nurse's statement that her injuries were not consistent with consensual sex.

Mackey, though, suggested Winters had no idea when the bruise occurred, and got him to acknowledge that the woman needed no treatment for injuries when she was examined. She also questioned him on whether he saw marks on her neck when he interviewed her the next day.

"She talks on how Mr. Kobe Bryant grabbed her neck and choked her," Mackey told Winters. "You looked at her neck to see?"

Winters said the woman seemed serious when he first interviewed her with her parents at their Eagle home.

Bryant faces up to life in prison if convicted of a felony charge of sexual assault.

Legal experts had expected the defense to waive the hearing and head straight to trial rather than allow prosecutors to lay out their case for the first time _ evidence that will be discussed in public for months.

Gannett had rejected defense requests to have the woman testify and to see her medical records.

The hearing began as hundreds of reporters and a handful of spectators gathered outside the courthouse to catch a glimpse of Bryant as he arrived with his lawyers in a caravan of three SUVs. He said nothing to the crowd.

Bryant had to take off a necklace and was checked with metal detectors before walking into the courtroom.

Bryant, free on $25,000 bond, had been ordered to appear in court for a bond hearing even if the preliminary hearing was waived. He left the Hawaii training camp of the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday.

Bryant has the right to go to trial within six months of entering a plea, but he could agree to push that back until later, perhaps after the NBA season ends early next summer.

Another report:

Detective Describes in Graphic Detail the Rape Accusations Against Kobe Bryant
By Tim Dahlberg The Associated Press
Published: Oct 9, 2003

EAGLE, Colo. (AP) - The woman who accused Kobe Bryant of rape told police a flirtatious encounter quickly turned ugly when he grabbed her by the neck and attacked her, repeatedly asking, "You're not going to tell anyone, right?," a detective testified Thursday.

Eagle County Sheriff's Detective Doug Winters described the encounter in graphic detail at a preliminary hearing that will determine whether Bryant will stand trial on charges that he assaulted the 19-year-old woman at the resort where she worked. His description of the event was based on an interview with the woman, who did not testify Thursday.

The hearing was expected to last only an afternoon, but was adjourned for the day after about six hours of testimony. Judge Frederick Gannett said the hearing would continue next Wednesday, and the district attorney's office said Bryant had to appear.

Bryant, 25, has denied raping the woman and said the sex was consensual. He sat at the defense table staring straight at the detective for much of the hearing, his hands folded in front of him. Bryant occasionally clenched his jaw, but showed little other reaction.

Winters described how, according to the woman, an exciting, chance meeting with the Los Angeles Lakers' superstar led to an assault that left her shaken and in tears. She said she told Bryant "no" at least twice and he ignored her.

It began with a tour of the resort on June 30 that led to some flirting. She went back to Bryant's room and, after some conversation, showed him a tattoo on her ankle, then turned down his request to join him in the hot tub, Winters said.

Her shift at the front desk was ending and she wanted to go home, he said. "She stated she was starting to feel a bit uncomfortable."

She stood up to leave and Bryant gave her a hug that led to some consensual kissing, Winters said.

When she turned around to go, Bryant grabbed her by the neck from behind, pulled up her skirt and raped her against a chair, Winters said. The woman said that Bryant forced her to kiss his penis after the attack, Winters testified.

During and after the alleged attack, Winters said that Bryant kept asking, "You're not going to tell anyone, right?" She said she agreed at one point.

"She didn't want him to commit more physical harm to her," Winters said.

Though the testimony was lurid, the most explosive statement came from Bryant's own defense attorney when she suggested that the woman's injuries would also be "consistent with a person who has had sex with three different men in three days."

That led an angry Gannett to empty the courtroom and summon the lawyers to his chambers. Gannett was also upset earlier when defense attorney Pamela Mackey said the woman's name four times when asking questions.

She apologized, saying she would write herself a big note not to say it.

"Or I could get you a big muzzle," Gannett said.

Winters, who was the only person to testify during the hearing, recounted the hourlong interview he had with the woman and her parents at their Eagle home the day after she met Bryant.

Winters said that after the alleged attack, the woman went back to the front desk to finish up her work and left the resort with a bellman. She told him what happened and he urged her to report it, later following her home.

Winters testified that the woman's blood was found on the inside of Bryant's T-shirt, based on DNA tests. The woman told him she had bleeding from the alleged attack, he said.

Winters said the woman seemed furious during the interview.

"I sensed a crackle in her voice," he said. "She stated that he raped her."

Winters said a nurse who examined the woman later at a hospital found injuries consistent with a sexual assault. The prosecution also presented photographs showing vaginal injuries and one of a bruise on the woman's jaw.

Mackey suggested Winters had no idea when the bruise occurred, and got him to acknowledge that the woman needed no treatment for injuries when she was examined. She also questioned him on whether he saw marks on her neck when he interviewed her the next day.

"She talks on how Mr. Kobe Bryant grabbed her neck and choked her," Mackey told Winters. "You looked at her neck to see?"

Winters said he had, then Mackey asked him if he saw any injuries on her neck.

"Not from the front, no," he said.

"Not a red mark?" she asked.

"That's correct," he said.

"Not a scratch?"

"That's correct."

Legal experts had expected the defense to waive the hearing and head straight to trial rather than allow prosecutors to lay out their case publicly for the first time.

The hearing began as hundreds of reporters and a handful of spectators gathered outside the courthouse to catch a glimpse of Bryant, who arrived with his lawyers in a caravan of three sport utility vehicles. He had to take off a necklace and was checked with metal detectors before walking into the courtroom. He had left the Hawaii training camp of the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday.

He has the right to go to trial within six months, but he could agree to push that back until later, perhaps after the NBA season ends early next summer.

He faces a possible prison term of four years to life if convicted.

AP-ES-10-09-03 2129EDT

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