Posted on 12/29/2006 10:07:41 PM PST by rawhide
Dec. 29, 2006 — In yet another moral blow to Durham County District Attorney Mike Nifong, the North Carolina Conference of District Attorneys called for the prosecutor to step down from the Duke lacrosse case.
The group, which represents district attorneys from across North Carolina, said in a statement that "it is in the interest of justice and the effective administration of criminal justice that Mr. Nifong immediately withdraw and recuse himself from the prosecution."
"It's extraordinarily unusual and it means a great deal," said Joshua Marquis, a district attorney in Clatsop County, Ore.
The district attorney group also called for the case to be reassigned and handed over to "another prosecutorial authority."
The statement was prompted by charges of ethics violations against Nifong filed Thursday by the North Carolina bar. Those allegations accuse Nifong of making inappropriate comments about the case in a series of press interviews early in the proceedings.
"As prosecutors, we do not try our cases in the media. We do not file charges frivolously," Marquis, who is active in the National District Attorneys Association, told ABC News.
"I do not know what the merit of the charges are, but Mr. Nifong has not brought respect to our profession," Marquis said. "Some of his actions have brought great disrepute on the profession of prosecution."
Under North Carolina state law, there is no rule requiring Nifong to recuse himself from the case, even though he has been charged with ethics violations. But Nifong's critics — including defense attorneys for the three indicted Duke lacrosse players — say Nifong should step down because the ethics charges create a glaring and unavoidable conflict of interest. A prosecutor, they argue, cannot make fair and independent decisions when he himself is in legal hot water.
"My opinion is that this crystallizes the conflict of interest," Thomas Metzloff, a member of the North Carolina bar and professor at Duke Law School, told ABC News.
No sooner than three months from now, Nifong will stand trial before a panel drawn from the bar's disciplinary hearing commission. If that panel finds Nifong guilty of misconduct, he would be subject to punishment ranging from private admonishment to disbarment.
Is this the active thread? Been out of town the past day or two and just now getting back.
abb
What an artless op-ed Skube wrote. An opinion piece that offers no opinion. What is the point Mr. Skube?
Is it that you are a knee jerk academic also and do not dare have an opinion on this case either since the only acceptable opinion to you ended up discreditted?
This is the active thread as far as I know. Hope you had a good trip.
Top 10 stories of 2006 -- No. 1: The controversial Duke lacrosse case
BY JOHN STEVENSON, The Herald-Sun
December 30, 2006 11:39 pm
The story that defined the year in Durham emerged when 2006 was still young.
The Duke lacrosse team threw an off-campus party in mid-March and hired two exotic dancers. One, a black single mother and N.C. Central University student, told police three white players raped, sodomized and kidnapped her.
For the remaining three-quarters of the year, the case brought unprecedented national and even international publicity to Durham, polarized the community along racial and class lines, and ultimately threatened to end District Attorney Nifong's three-decade legal career in disgrace.
Three young men -- Collin Finnerty, Reade Seligmann and David Evans -- initially were indicted on charges of raping, sodomizing and kidnapping the dancer during the party at 610 N. Buchanan Blvd. on the night of March 13-14.
But Nifong dismissed the rape charges this month after the accuser, reversing her own earlier accounts, told an investigator she wasn't sure a penis was used in the alleged assault. By definition, rape in North Carolina must involve vaginal intercourse. Sexual offense and kidnapping charges-- both felonies -- remain in place.
The three defendants have maintained their innocence and are free under $100,000 bonds as they await a trial that may occur next year.
In the latest development, the N.C. State Bar announced Thursday it would put Nifong on trial for making potentially unethical media statements while the case was in its infancy.
Among other things, he said during a rash of interviews in the spring that he believed the alleged sexual assault was racially motivated. He also characterized the Duke lacrosse team as "hooligans" who apparently took advantage of an underprivileged victim.
Nifong would face a broad range of penalties if the State Bar found he did, in fact, act unethically. He could receive anything from a warning letter to loss of his law license for five years or disbarment.
URL for this article: http://www.heraldsun.com/durham/4-804273.cfm
Lessons from top 10 stories of 2006
December 30, 2006 11:33 pm
You were probably not surprised to learn in today's newspaper, on the final day of 2006, that the number one news story of the year was the Duke lacrosse rape case. From almost the day the incident occurred in March until the present, the lacrosse case dominated local headlines and broadcasts.
Nor was the story limited to the local media. It was a Newsweek cover and a double segment on "60 Minutes." The pundits probed it incessantly on the cable news channels. Durham residents grew accustomed -- and more than a little tired -- of seeing their town depicted, and sometimes distorted, in the national news.
At the beginning of 2006, who would have predicted that Mike Nifong's name would be bandied about -- often in a negative way -- across the nation? If you can find that person, ask them for a good stock tip.
The lacrosse case was so big it not only sucked up a lot of ink and airtime, it also garnered two of the top 10 stories of the year. Number 4 on our list, as voted on by The Herald-Sun newsroom staff, was the District Attorney's election, which also centered around the lacrosse case.
You could tell it wasn't your normal ho-hum Durham DA's race when, at a candidates' forum at The Herald-Sun building, the back of the room was so full of TV cameras it looked like a presidential press conference. And the case was so controversial that Nifong still faced a challenge in the general election even after winning the primary. Normally, the Democratic primary winner in Durham would win the general election unopposed, but Nifong had to fend off challenges from Lewis Cheek (who said he wouldn't serve if elected) and Steve Monks, a write-in candidate.
But lacrosse wasn't the only big story in 2006. If you take the remaining eight stories on our top 10 list, they could be grouped into categories that say something about our world and our interests.
Three stories on the list were about sports, an indication of the importance we place on organized games. Two of the stories were about public education and, specifically, Durham Public Schools. That's a reflection of the intense interest on public education in Durham and the region. And two of the stories were about shocking outbreaks of unexpected violence. Both occurred in Orange County, and, oddly, both had seeds of motivation in national and international trends.
The one remaining story was No. 5, dubbed "Durham city government problems." It was a catch-all category that included an embarrassing fire at the city dump, tap water that tested positive for lead, trash that didn't get picked up and a Solid Waste director who quit after a week on the job. Year in, year out, problems in Durham city government seem to rank in the top 10 stories of the year. It would be nice to see everything go smoothly and to have that category off the list in 2007.
Our hometown sports heroics came from two unusual sources this year: The NCCU Eagles football team and the Carolina Hurricanes NHL team. The Eagles, under coach Rod Broadway, had the first perfect regular season, 10-0, in school history, then went on to win their second straight CIAA championship.
The Hurricanes, still a relative newcomer to the Triangle sports scene, shocked nearly everyone by advancing through the NHL's Stanley Cup playoffs to the championship and then winning it, bringing the Triangle its first national championship in a professional sport.
Our local college football programs were not nearly so successful, leading to two prominent coaches being shown the door, John Bunting of UNC and Chuck Amato of N.C. State. They were quickly replaced by, respectively, Butch Davis and Tom O'Brien. And the cycle of hope continues.
On the public education front, one of the biggest stories was surely the ascendancy of a new superintendent, Carl Harris, at Durham Public Schools. High hopes are riding on Harris to help unify the district and to boost achievement for all students. Story No. 8 on the list was an indication of the major challenges he will face. It involved Judge Howard Manning Jr. threatening a list of low-performing high schools across the state with closure if they didn't improve. The list included Durham's Hillside and Southern high schools.
There were also shocking events at schools in Orange County in 2006. On a March day at "The Pit" at UNC in Chapel Hill, a favorite outdoor hangout for students, a recent graduate plowed his Jeep Cherokee through the crowd, striking and injuring nine students. Amazingly, no one was seriously hurt or killed. The driver, Mohammad Taheri-Azar, said he did it to avenge American treatment of Muslims throughout the world.
And in August, in the number two top story of the year, former student Alvaro Rafael Castillo, apparently inspired by the Colombine, Colo., school shootings, allegedly killed his father, then brought a small arsenal to Orange High school and opened fire in the parking lot. Two students received minor wounds, but a potentially horrific tragedy was averted by the courageous intervention of school resource officer Cpl. London Ivey and reserve officer and teacher Russ LeBlanc, who faced down and subdued Castillo.
Ivey and LeBlanc showed clearly that individuals acting bravely to do the right thing, even at risk to themselves, can make a huge difference in the world. We can't think of a better lesson to take from the top stories of 2006.
URL for this article: http://www.heraldsun.com/opinion/hsedits/56-804257.cfm
LOL! That wouldn't surprise me.
Where's the Durham outcry on lacrosse case?
You are right, Mike Silver. I am also tired of hearing from so many people across this great nation about the lacrosse crime. I ask you, where is the local outcry of the crime committed in Durham? All crimes should have proper punishment, regardless of race, financial or political status.
Yes, a serious crime was committed here, but, not by three Duke lacrosse players. Far too quick judgment brought shame and much undue anguish on them, their families, their teammates, their coach, Duke University and the entire community of Durham. Shame on Mike Nifong and shame on all those who elected him to office. Shame on Duke for not giving more support from the beginning. Shame on The Herald-Sun for jumping in too early with judgment.
Allowing these remaining serious charges to go on and on continues to hurt all of us in Durham and beyond who care about honesty and justice. Unfortunately, the new dropped rape charge has done lasting damage to all actual rape victims for years to come. I ask again … where is the Durham outcry and sense of honor?
BARBARA G. COLLIE
Durham
December 31, 2006
Nifong turns to Times
I had to laugh when I read that Mike Nifong gave a three-hour interview to The New York Times. Putting aside his numerous previous statements that he would save all commentary for the courtroom, let's focus on who he turned to when he decided to deviate from his self-imposed strategy.
Will breaking his silence by turning to a big New York publication cost him the support of this paper's editorial staff? After all, they have printed sympathetic story after sympathetic story on Nifong's behalf and he doesn't even repay them with the scoop of his first comments in months?
And what about all the letter writers angry that citizens outside of Durham have voiced opinions in this case? Now Nifong has himself encouraged further meddling from outsiders in a case that he had previously stated requires "a Durham solution."
PETER BOVE
New York
December 31, 2006
Resign and apologize
I stated a while back that regardless of any upcoming situations, Mike Nifong would eventually drop this insane case, after of course he secured his vote in November. Now that he has secured his position, along with some serious national heat he's drawn upon himself, he's decided to drop the charges. Now he claims it's only because the woman has now stated she cannot say with certainty that she was raped.
If that was his true reasoning, then why wasn't it dropped long ago when the former accuser had eight different stories? Point blank, Nifong used the race card among blacks to get his votes. The only real winner in this situation, despite being a single mom bearing yet another child, is the deranged individual herself, who will be receiving free education from no other than Jesse Jackson.
Dropping the case isn't enough. Nifong should be forced to resign and apologize to the families he's hurt. I cannot imagine how this man shows his face in public, without feeling like crawling under a rock.
Oh and if he's reading, he might also want to drop those ridiculous kidnapping and sexual misconduct charges. Lord knows, it's only going to cause him more embarrassment.
MIKE LANEER
Durham
December 31, 2006
http://www.heraldsun.com/opinion/hsletters/
Will University presidents also call for the head of Duke and the 88 professors who proclaimed the guilty of their own students?
It was just disgraceful how this University handled the entire episode. Not that the underlying behavior of the lax team was exemplary, but sophomoric behavior is far from criminal.
Another award winning video!
http://www.resisttheurge.com/dukevideos/whiskeyformymen.html
American Thinker Chimes in:
"December 30, 2006
Another first for Nifong
Clarice Feldman
First the North Carolina Bar Association filed an unprecedented 17 page complaint against Nifong charging him with multiple violations of the rules of ethics. The yesterday yet another precedent against the prosecutor. From Durham in Wonderland: "
http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2006/12/another_first_for_nifong.html
There is a new thread on FR on this:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1760659/posts
So do we want to migrate there or stay here?
Mark - consensus - you stupid lazy idiot;) Don't expect anyone here to supply facts in response to legitimate questions. These people are professional posters. They don't have time (probably Freeping at the office on the boss' dime)to look stuff up for you!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Do it yourself.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/commentary/20061230-105723-7077r.htm
I'm thinking this thread's still good. It's still topically current.
There definitely should be some remedy for malicious prosecution. At the very least, complete reimbursement of all attorneys fees if it is proven that the charges were completely false (but not based solely on a "not guilty" verdict).
But having prosecuted sex crimes I know how much we have to overcome to get a conviction despite the "blame the victim" mentality cases like this engender, as well as the difficulty with the "he said/she said" aspect. I've seen false claims and I made a tremendous effort to consider the case thoroughly before recommending charges be filed, but it's a dicey business.
This case completely crumbled from the start, even to us non-insiders, but I think Nifong was thoroughly blinded by the political ramifications of the case and since he's a 'Rat, this is par for the course with them.
TIME LINE TIME LINE - WORKING ON IT!
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12335371/site/newsweek/
Do you think Nifong would have gone to such lengths if he believed the students were guilty? He's going to such lengths precisely because he knows they're innocent; if they were guilty, such lengths wouldn't be necessary.
An early December Associated Press story out of Atlantic City caught my eye. "Prostitutes arm selves as body count rises," read the headline.
"Selling sex on the streets of this gambling capital is a dangerous pursuit," began AP writer Wayne Parry. "Streetwalkers have been strangled, smothered, slashed and set ablaze.
"So far this year, six prostitutes are believed to have been killed in or near Atlantic City, a seventh survived after her throat was slashed. Countless others are believed to have been assaulted but chose not to report the crimes to police."
"Selling sex on the streets of this gambling capital is a dangerous pursuit," began AP writer Wayne Parry.
But is it legal?
I don't even think he considered guilt or innocence. I think he saw his opportunity to pander to the voters and took it. I think he's too stupid to realize the ramifications of his course of action. Allegedly, he never even interviewed the accuser. How can you weigh the credibility of the allegations if you don't interview the victim? We did it every time!
mark
Good commentary from Washington Times
http://www.washingtontimes.com/commentary/20061230-105723-7077r.htm
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