The bellhop evidence sounds bad. I don't know if it's true or not. We've heard other evidence and rumors that later turned out to be false. I'm not making any judgements or predictions at this point. I don't think that the girl tried to kill herself is really all that negative on her credibility.
August 4, 2003 Two more rumors bite the dust Randy Wyrick Two more reports regarding the Kobe Bryant case circulating among part of the national media were debunked Monday. Media reports that the 19-year-old woman who Bryant allegedly assaulted received a ride home is not the case, sources said Monday. Reports that her clothing was torn are also untrue, sources also. Sources told the Daily that the alleged victim managed to get herself home by 11:50 p.m., June 30, after ending the shift at the Lodge at Cordillera at around 11:10 p.m. They also said that while her clothing was disheveled and showed signs that something had occurred, it wasn't torn or ripped, as some reports indicated. "Some of the reports made it sound like something out of a bad movie," said one source. "It wasn't like that." The reports are part of a larger set of rumors and gossip that have been circulating across the country about the case. Among them: - That the alleged victim was in the room two hours. It was only about 20 minutes. - When she came down, she was hysterical. She was not. Sources said she was in a stupor and a state of shock. - A few days before the incident, the alleged victim had accused another hotel worker of sexual harassment, getting him fired. Not true, said the man who was terminated. It was not the alleged victim. http://www.vaildaily.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20030804/NEWS/308040101
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/us/Sports/kobebryant_hearing030806.html Evidence of Injury? Sources: Doctors Found ‘Tearing’ on Bryant’s Alleged Victim Aug. 6— ABCNEWS has been told that examiners found evidence that the woman accusing NBA superstar Kobe Bryant of sexual assault had "vaginal tearing." The information comes as Bryant prepares for a court appearance today in which he will be read the formal charge in the case against him. Prosecutors could argue that this is not consistent with consensual sex, legal analysts say, but the defense could rebut this in several ways, including that vaginal tearing could be sustained during consensual sex, or was not incurred during sex with Bryant. Several sources familiar with the case also told ABCNEWS that the accuser has alleged that she tried to leave Bryant's hotel room and he blocked the door. The sources said that the sheriff's original arrest warrant included a misdemeanor claim of false imprisonment. The prosecutor did not ultimately include a false imprisonment claim in the charging document. One reason may be that prosecutors prefer not to give the jury the option of finding guilt on a lesser offense as a way of compromising. That does not mean that prosecutors cannot include the allegation at trial. Bryant will appear in Eagle County, Colo., court today to be formally advised of the sexual assault charge he faces for allegedly raping a 19-year-old woman. The hearing is expected to be brief — between five and 10 minutes only. The Los Angeles Lakers guard will be advised of the charge, his rights and the possible penalties he faces. Bryant will not be required to enter a plea at today's hearing, legal analysts expect that he will not make any statements. "All eyes are watching — the potential jury pool is out there. They're going to be evaluating every move he makes," prosecutor Kimberly Guilfoyle-Newsom said today on ABCNEWS' Good Morning America. "He's been quite vocal over the course of the past weeks, and especially at the Teen Choice Awards, saying injustice anywhere is injustice everywhere. But look for him to keep quiet today, which would be a smart move." Bryant's public relations struggle will continue after the hearing, as he faces the question of how to appear innocent without appearing callous or unconcerned, or worse — guilty. "It's kind of a Catch-22," defense attorney Chris Pixley told Good Morning America. "After today's hearing, if Kobe Bryant is holed up by his defense team, then the suggestion is made by the media that he's hiding behind his attorneys or that worse, he may be showing signs of guilt or that he's guilt ridden. "The flip side is when he's out in the media or out in public as he has been recently, there are a lot of attacks made against him for maybe being cavalier about the charges against him," Pixley said. "It's a lose-lose. At the end of the day, you can't tell your client they can't go about their life. This is someone who is a celebrity. He's going to be followed whenever he's out." He Said, She Said Bryant, 24, met his alleged victim on June 30, when he stayed at Lodge & Spa at Cordillera in Edwards. The NBA star, who is married and has an infant daughter, has admitted committing adultery with the woman but insists the sex was consensual. He flew back to Colorado to turn himself in to authorities for his arrest on July 4 and was freed after posting $25,000 bond. The woman, an employee at the resort, was allegedly attacked after she gave Bryant a tour of the facility's hotel and spa, sources have told ABCNEWS. The tour ended at Bryant's room, sources say, where he allegedly invited her to come inside and she accepted. According to the sources, there was some consensual contact between Bryant and his accuser, but the woman says she did not consent to intercourse. Sources say a bellhop at the Lodge & Spa at Cordillera told police he saw the woman shortly after the alleged attack and that she was visibly upset and disheveled. Small Town Ready for Big-Time Onslaught Under Colorado law, a rape can still occur if the victim consents to some sexual activity, but later withdraws her consent or refuses to give consent to other sexual activity, including intercourse. Bryant faces probation to life in prison if convicted on the single felony count. Some courtroom observers have said they do not expect a plea bargain in the case. If Bryant pleaded guilty to a lesser count, he would have to register as a convicted sex offender. "From the prosecution point of view, you don't really plead those cases down or plead them anyway," Court TV reporter Vinnie Politan told ABCNEWS' Good Morning America. "From the defendant's point of view, any sort of admission to doing anything wrong here is just suicide for him." Authorities at the Eagle County Courthouse have been preparing for days for a media onslaught when Bryant makes his first court appearance. Prosecutors have received threats since Bryant was charged, so court officials planned to have their metal detectors ready and post sheriff's deputies around the courthouse. Seats in the small courtroom had to be assigned to certain members of the press and a tent was set up outside the courthouse to accommodate the overflow of reporters.
I found this article on CourtTV.com this morning and found it to be fairly interesting. Good insight and it stated a couple of things that I hadn't seen in any other reports. Saying yes, then no: Bryant case enters national debate By Matt Bean Court TV What happens when a woman agrees to have sex and then changes her mind? That question is likely to be the central issue in the looming trial of NBA star Kobe Bryant. The 19-year-old hotel employee who has accused Bryant of sexual assault claims the two started "fooling around" in the basketball star's Eagle, Colo., hotel room until she asked him to stop, according to published reports. If the reports are true, Bryant's case will speak directly to an ongoing debate over the way sexual assault is addressed in the nation's courts. At issue: how and when does a woman's "no" turn consensual sex into rape? "If I invite you into my house and I ask you to come in for an hour and then I change my mind and ask you to leave, you gotta leave," said Wendy Murphy, a former Boston prosecutor and director of the Victim Advocacy & Research Group. "If it's not my house but my body instead, it's an even more compelling argument." While withdrawal of consent — saying no after initially saying yes — may seem simple in principle, states have taken divergent approaches to its use in the courtroom. Illinois recently became the first state to officially address the withdrawal of consent by amending its rape law to include sexual activity after either party says "no." Lawmakers there said the move was in reaction to a precedent-setting California rape conviction that was ultimately upheld by the state's Supreme Court. In that case, two 17-year-olds were having sex at a party when the girl changed her mind during intercourse. The boy continued, and he was charged and convicted of sexual assault. The Colorado state statutes hold no such provision for a change of mind as in Illinois, and according to one former prosecutor, make it difficult to convict if the initial penetration is consensual. "Penetration is the key. Up until the point of penetration, no means no," said Norm Early. According to Early, withdrawing consent after penetration complicates a case because of the initial consent. But to victims rights advocates, the distinction continues the dangerous practice of focusing on the victim's complicity. "The shift in law has been to treat sexual assault as a crime of violence and to try to move the emphasis away from the victim and what she was doing or not doing and toward the suspect, and what he was doing," said Cassia Spohn, a criminal justice professor at the University of Omaha and co-author of the 1992 book "Rape Law Reform." Making a specific provision for withdrawal of consent, such as in the Illinois law, goes too far, according to victims rights advocate Murphy. "You shouldn't have to codify basic principles of human rights, which is what rape laws are all about," she said. "You should never put it into legislation that people have a right to change their mind." In prosecuting Bryant, Eagle County attorneys are expected to argue that, before penetration, the victim revoked her consent. Former prosecutor Early called the alleged victim's change of heart a "hurdle, but obviously [prosecutors] don't feel that it's a fatal hurdle." Ultimately, the question of when and how the victim's consent was revoked is less important than whether her story rings true, says Craig Silverman, a Colorado defense lawyer and former Denver prosecutor. "If you ask me whether it's rape if a woman agrees to some sexual activity and then says no," said Silverman, "that depends on what any particular Colorado jury says on the subject."
It could be evidence that she was a "drama queen", which is how one of her classmates described her. But again, I'm sure it would be easy to find someone at a high school to talk bad about a popular person on the cheerleading squad.
However, think of it this way as well. Suppose all the slander and ridicule pushes this 19-year-old girl to really commit suicide. How will the case go then? How will the media's direct culpability affect the reporting process (or will pack reporters even care)? Just asking.
No, the teen's testimony would become virtually unimpeachable -- without a means to attack her testimony directly. Innocent or guilty, his attorneys would have little chance of winning because they would no chance to trip her up on the witness stand. Remember, she is not the accuser. She is the chief witness of the prosecution. The State of Colorado is the accuser. The teenager already has been deposed, so her testimony would be admissible. Is there attorney in the house? Could be have an opinion on this, please.
Wow. Kobe got off. Now he is trying to get off. And in China he just would be offed. That's some kind of offal!
wtf are u talking about? One, as much as bad of a rep as Chinese government has, their is still a court system for criminal trials to determine guilt. Nothing happens to Kobe till he's proven guilty, no one knows if he's done it or not. Two, come on, do you think some one as rich as Kobe in China couldn't grease the wheels and open some back doors?
Havn't you seen the movie "the red corner" starring richard gere? In kobe case, there's enough evidence to execute Kobe three times and have his organs harvested. Unlike america, celebrities walk away with rape, murder and other unthinkable crimes.
It's interesting to see that some people really believe in anything that some Hollywood movies perpetrate, then others follow their belief without a doubt. Sorry but some of you guys are more easier to manipulate than those who live in a communistic country.
I've never heard a lawyer give that interpretation if the woman can't or won't testify. It makes hers and Colo's case virtually unwinnable because she's not there to defend herself, prove to the jury that she's not a whacko, or explain inconsistencies in her story.
