Case Aganst Duke Student Unraveling Fast

ABC GMA | Chris Cummo

[MindBender26]

Breaking overnight from Chris Cummo at ABC GMA:

Case against at least one Duke defemdant unraveling fast.

Defendant Seiligman went to bank ATM while rape supposedly happening.

12:02 Time stamped photos show girl arriving. Girl leaves, comes back, call friends on cell phone does other things. 12:19 Seiligman calls cab dispatcher 12:24 Seiligman takes cab to bank miles away, uses ATM card (photos show it is him.) 12:42 after walking back to dorm, Seiligman uses security card to enter dorm. Does not leave.

Also, Seiligman was never interviewed by cops. DA seeking reelection simply took "Dancers" word that he raped her.

[finnigan2]

"What's is the ho's name? The world needs to know!"

- You're not being politically correct. The stripper/escort service employee/druggie is being portrayed in media reports as just a poor university student working her way through college.

[gunnedah]

The only ones that lose in the legal system are the public. Lawyers make the law,instruct how to enforce the law and decide who is to be charged, who is guilty and hand out the penalty.Lawyers totally control the legal system from beginning to end and they police themselves. Nuff Said!

[SirJohnBarleycorn]

http://www.herald-sun.com/durham/4-725876.html

Excerpt:

While they acknowledged that Seligmann attended the March 13 party at 610 N. Buchanan Blvd., two attorneys said Seligmann wasn't at the party for part of the time they say the alleged rape could have occurred -- between 12:10 and 12:30 a.m. on March 14. They base this timeframe on time-stamped photographs purportedly made by an unidentified student at the party.

The attorneys, however, declined to be named and would not show The Herald-Sun the evidence to substantiate their claim.

The lawyers said Seligmann has records to prove he made cell phone calls at 12:07, 12:09 and 12:11 a.m.

Then he called a cab at 12:14 a.m. and was picked up and driven away from North Buchanan Boulevard at 12:19 a.m., the lawyers said Tuesday.

Finally, a security camera at a bank ATM machine showed Seligmann making a withdrawal at 12:24 a.m., the lawyers added. They declined to be specific about which cab company or which bank Seligmann purportedly used.

Charlotte attorney Pete Anderson told The Charlotte Observer that both players have alibis.

"In the upcoming weeks, the lawyers for these two students are going to be able to provide objective evidence that demonstrates they were not capable of committing any sexual offense," Anderson said. "This will include receipts and other records demonstrating that they weren't present at the house at the time when the assault was allegedly taking place."

The Herald-Sun could not corroborate the claim that Seligmann summoned a cab on the night in question. All 12 of the taxicab companies serving Durham contacted by The Herald-Sun on Tuesday said they did not dispatch a driver to 610 N. Buchanan Blvd. on the night of the alleged incident.

Bell Belahouel is owner and operator of the Safe Ride company, which allows Duke students to pay using an account tied to their student IDs. Belahouel said his records show both the indicted students have used his service before, but not on March 13. Belahouel, who said Mondays are usually pretty quiet, said his phone records show no calls whatsoever were made to his business between 6:04 p.m. March 13 and 8:06 a.m. March 14.

Belahouel also said he called all of his drivers who worked that night and that none of them remembered going to Buchanan Boulevard.

[McBuff]

"Rearend Jesse Jackson"

ROTFLMAO..coffee spew!!

[kx9088]

When you're drunk, you do things that make no sense at all.

[KevinB]

This guy obviously should NOT be on trial here.

As I said in my post, I agree. The title of the original post uses this timeline as an indication that the case is unraveling. All I'm saying is that more information is needed for this information to mean anything from an evidentiary perspective.

[Farmer Dean]

This also makes me wonder about the people on the grand jury.

[wagglebee]

The strippers left the house at about 12:41 AM, if this timeline is accurate, there is NO POSSIBLE WAY he could have been involved in a rape.

[Jezebelle]

More charges against Finnerty and Seligmann or meaning a third suspect?

[yhwhsman]

Isn't it more likely that he needed cash for the ho?

It doesn't matter if it was cash for a 'ho', it proves that he wasn't present during the supposed rape.

[finnigan2]

"If this turns out to be true, the DA and the dancer should both go up on charges."

- Can a DA or any public prosecutor for that matter be successfully sued for malicious prosecution? I was under the impression that persons in such positions were exempt from being charged.

[kidd]

Let's see here. Stripper shows up, and guy goes to ATM to get cash after midnight. Sounds like she may have disclosed her price for a good time.

Well, ATMs don't dispense $1 bills. And he took a cab to an ATM that was a 15 minute walk away?

[Diago]

Eyewitness News Looks at Party Photos

 By Steve Daniels

(04/18/06 -- DURHAM) - Eyewitness News and the ABC News law-and-justice unit are getting a chance to examine time-stamped photos taken inside the home on the night of the controversial Duke lacrosse party.

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The photos are believed to be authentic and taken by one of the students at the March 13 party. The time stamps on the photos appear to be accurate. Pictures of a wristwatch magnified for clarity correspond with the time on the photos. The players are sitting on three couches in a semicircle with the dancers in the middle.

11:02 p.m.: The first picture shows at least 10 students hanging out in a living room, apparently waiting for the dancers to arrive. Most of the students appear to be drinking. By the number of people in this photo, it appears only a fraction of the 47 lacrosse team members are there.

12 a.m.: This is the first picture of the strippers. Students are watching the show, but not grabbing or attempting to touch the women. Bruises are clearly visible on the legs and thighs of the alleged victim.

12:00:40 a.m.: Another picture taken 40 seconds later shows bruises on the accuser's knees. Her right knee appears to have an open cut.

12:03:57 p.m.: About four minutes after arriving, a picture shows the strippers leaving the room. The photo clearly shows that the alleged victim left behind one of her shoes.

Between 12:10 a.m. and 12:30 a.m.: No photos were taken between this time.

12:30:12 a.m.: The next photo shows the alleged victim on the back porch, carrying what appears to be her purse and a makeup bag. Her clothes are intact.

12:30:47 a.m.: A photo taken 30 seconds later shows the alleged victim on the porch and she appears to smile.

12:31:26 a.m.: But 30 seconds after that, a photo shows the alleged victim stumbling down the back steps of the house.

12:37:58 a.m.: A series of photos are taken, all showing the woman lying on her left side on the back porch, seemingly passed out or asleep. She had visible cuts on her legs and buttocks that did not appear in the previous photos.

The cuts may be from falling. The cuts on her buttocks line up with the edge of a screen door she may have hit on the way down.

12:41 a.m.: The final photo shows the accuser and the second dancer in a black car. The accuser is in the passengers seat.

Many of the photos taken on the back porch show pink splotches, which the defense says is undried nail polish. They claim the accuser was polishing her nails in the bathroom between 12:10 a.m. and 12:30 a.m. - - not being raped.

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[panthermom]

12:41 a.m.: The final photo shows the accuser and the second dancer in a black car. The accuser is in the passengers seat.

[alrea]

worst part of it is that the ones accused will be bankrupted by legal fees just from having to defend themselves

This is the chance of a lifetime for several firms to establish themselves in the market for cases dealing with violations of civil rights.

[Buffettfan]

Can you say Tawana Brawley?

[Perdogg]

The call from the Kroger came about 12:53am. There is no way that it would take 10 ten minutes to get that Kroger on an early Tuesday morning.

[When do we get liberated?]

Like Cgris Rock said, "Nobody has ever gone to an ATM after midnight for a good upstanding reason"

[Wolfie]

This is why DA should be legally designated as the end of the line. You take the job, you forfeit the chance to run for any other political office.