Posted on 06/27/2006 11:21:24 AM PDT by pissant
DURHAM -- A new batch of prosecution information showed that no rape occurred during a Duke University lacrosse party in March and revealed roughly a dozen conflicting statements by the accuser -- who even once told authorities she was not sexually assaulted -- two defense lawyers contend in court documents filed Monday.
Lawyers Kirk Osborn and Ernest Conner, representing indicted rape suspect Reade Seligmann, said they needed to know which of the accuser's stories District Attorney Mike Nifong intended to use "in his attempt to falsely prosecute" their client.
Osborn and Conner were responding to 536 pages of documents about the case that they received from Nifong last week, on top of 1,298 pages they got earlier.
The documents consist "mainly of extraneous, irrelevant material," the defense lawyers wrote of the new documents.
None show any crime occurred, they added. In fact, they said, the documents show the accuser -- an exotic dancer hired to perform at the party -- said no rape occurred, and gave about a dozen conflicting statements.
Nifong had no comment Monday.
"He will address motions in the courtroom, where and when it is appropriate," said one of his assistants, Candy Clark.
If they chose to, the defense lawyers could make public all the information they have received from Nifong. But they have not done so.
Lawyer Joe Cheshire, representing another indicted rape suspect, David Evans, last week said essentially the same thing as Osborn and Conner after he received the latest batch of documents from Nifong.
Seligmann, Evans and Collin Finnerty are accused of raping the dancer in a bathroom during the party at 610 N. Buchanan Blvd. across from East Campus.
But the woman said at one point she had been assaulted by as many as 20 men before narrowing the number to five and finally three, according to information previously revealed by defense attorneys. At another point, she claimed she had not been raped at all, the information indicated.
In the new paperwork, Osborn and Conner said the indictments against Seligmann contained insufficient detail, so they requested 22 specific bits of information to fill in the blanks.
Among other things, they asked exactly where and at what time a first-degree rape allegedly occurred, and whether a deadly weapon was used. They also wanted to know, in reference to a kidnapping charge, whether the accuser was held in "involuntary servitude" and whether she was released in a safe place.
Last month, Osborn and Conner filed a motion asking that Nifong be removed from the case due to "prosecutorial misconduct and other strange actions." In that motion, they said Nifong inexplicably had continued to prosecute Seligmann despite "a complete alibi:" cell phone, taxicab and bank ATM records indicating he was elsewhere when the rape allegedly occurred.
The three indicted men are free on bond as they await a trial that, according to Nifong, might begin next spring. Their next court date in the rape case is July 20.
Evans is due in court today on an unrelated charge of violating a city noise ordinance.
I love Duke LAX threads.
I love crawdads. Boiled with lotsa tabasco and served with an ice cold brew.
ROFL. That's about as accurate depiction as I've heard.
I think they have a criminal suit to be filed, myself.
I withheld judgement but the drip of this case, gets uglier and uglier.
Please tell me when the FBI comes to slap the cuffs on Nifong.
What an absolute disgrace.
I think Dan Abrams said the other day that he was able to isolate three statements that are completely independent of each other, and another half-dozen that overlap two of the three in different ways.
The "which bogus statement are you going to use?" comment is great.
They should include the county and the State in their suit.
There has been ENORMOUS damage to their lives.
LOL
Every player and parent should sue the pos DA, NiFong in civil court.
Discovery should get him into some real trouble and probably end up with his disbarment. Then divide up every asset his sorry A$$ owns.
Hammer Je$$e HiJackson in these civil courts.
Not gonna happen. He's completely safe, because he has a witness. From his position it matters not whether she is credible. This is something to think about when you read about other cases.
I know that's not the legal parameter here, but I just wanted to express the outrage.
it would be most interesting to see who the skank talked to prior to deciding to press charges
Nofong
Worst
Prosecutor
Ever.
Define Skank?
The DA or the Dancing sex toy?
Thanks for the post, pissant. And thanks for your ping to other thread, perdogg.
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