Duke To Reinstate Seligmann, Finnerty (DukeLax)

WTVD ^ | January 3, 2007 | Staff

[abb]

(01/03/07 -- DURHAM) - Duke lacrosse defendants Colin Finnerty and Reade Seligmann are both expected to be reinstated today as Duke students in good standing, two sources close to the case told ABC News. Also on abc11tv.com: Send us news tips | Desktop Alert | ABC11 AccuWeather | Pinpoint Traffic Defendant David Evans was allowed to graduate last spring, but underclassmen Seligmann and Finnerty were suspended from the University pending a resolution of the assault charges.

December 22, 2006, prosecutors dropped rape charges against the three Duke lacrosse players accused of attacking a stripper at a team party, but the three still face kidnapping and sexual offense charges.

According to court papers filed by District Attorney Mike Nifong, the accuser says she now does not know if she was penetrated during the alleged attack.

The accuser, a 28-year-old student at North Carolina Central University, has said three men raped her in a bathroom at a March 13 Duke lacrosse team party where she was hired to perform as a stripper.

The indicted players - Dave Evans, Collin Finnerty and Reade Seligmann - all say they are innocent, and their attorneys have consistently said no sex occurred at the party.

Evans graduated from Duke in May, the day before he was indicted. Sophomores Finnerty and Seligmann were suspended following their April 2006 indictments.

The Duke lacrosse team was also suspended from play, but was reinstated in June on a provisionary basis.

A press conference from defense attorneys is expected this afternoon.

Stay with abc11tv.com and ABC11 Eyewitness News for the latest on this developing story.

[SuziQ]

He won't be able to practice law which, even in NC, is likely a prerequisite to hold the job.

That's what I was thinking.

[secret garden]

Got it. It will be interesting to see if the alumni put any pressure on the president to resign.

[colderwater]

I lived in NC from '84 to '89. My wife served on the Grand jury, that would decide if there were sufficient evidence that a crime was committed. So, unless there have been changes made since, I believe you are in error.

That said, several things were learned.

(1) a Grand Jury could indict a ham sandwich if it wished

(2) The Grand Jury did not hand down indictments 100% of the time

(3) Don't live in trailer park.

In the Duke case, I think they boys were just having a typical jock party, and misbehaving as ~20 year olds are inclined to do. There is no evidence I have seen so far that would convert the slander they have received into fact.


As for Nifong, I think he took action on this case just like any other case (we fight like we train). An enterprising reporter might dig and find other cases of prosecutorial abuse...


C.W.

[JLS]

I believe you are in error.

It would help, if you would specificy the error you believe Jezebelle made. I believe she is correct that going to the Grand Jury avoids having a probable cause hearing in NC. She is also correct their is no record of evidence heard by the Grand Jury.

Perhaps you mean she is incorrect that NC has a probable cause hearing available. NC does have a probable cause hearing route, but not if a DA seeks an indictment by a Grand Jury. So she was correct on this point. That is why Nifong went the Grand Jury route? Alternatively maybe you are talking about the fact that DA's are ethically bound to present known exculpatory evidence to Grand Juries. That is true and Nifong broke that cannon of ethics too or avoided it by avoiding hearing exculpatory evidence, but that does not change the fact that a probable cause hearing would have cured this ethics violation by Nifong were a probably cause hearing available to defendants indicted by a grand jury.

[noblejones]

<<
I was looking at moving my business there, but changed my mind when all of this Nifong crap started.
>>

I passed on hiring a superior Web design firm in North Carolina in favor of a firm located in Tampa precisely because of this horsesh*t. First year's contract is for 250k, before we expect to turn a profit. I wouldn't even use a toliet in NC ever again.

[Protect the Bill of Rights]

I think planet Head Up Your Ass is somewhere near Uranus.

Snort, snort....That was funny!

[united1000]

http://www.dukenews.duke.edu/2006/02/recordapplications.html

Duke Receives Record Number of Applications

The university has seen a steady increase in the past decade, but this year represents a marked increase

By Patty Courtright

Wednesday, February 1, 2006

Durham, N.C. -- Duke University has received a record-setting 19,282 applications for just 1,640 places in the class that will enter Duke this fall, meaning that students seeking to become Blue Devils will face the most selective admissions process in the university’s history.

The university has seen a steady increase in applications during the last decade. This year represents a marked increase in the number of applications received -– 1,193 more than th university received last year, 2,541 more than two years ago and 4,572 more than five years ago.

“For a long time we’ve been fortunate to have many more students applying than we can admit, but we have seen a particularly sharp increase in applications the last several years,” said Christoph Guttentag, dean of undergraduate admissions.

“I think this is due in part to Duke’s enhanced visibility and recognition among the country’s elite schools. It is also partly a result of our increased recruiting efforts. Our admissions officers travel on average six weeks a year to meet with top high school students.

“And in the past five years, we have completely revamped our publications and our website to reflect Duke’s sense of energy, opportunity and academic rigor. The word is out that our undergraduates truly can create an educational experience that reflects their unique interests and passions.”

During the next two months, admissions officers will read and evaluate each of the 19,000-plus applications. “While people sometimes think we care only about academic qualifications, the selection process takes so long because the staff is dedicated to understanding each applicant as an individual, not just as a student,” Guttentag said.

High school seniors apply either to the university’s Trinity College of Arts and Sciences or the Pratt School of Engineering. This year’s applicant pool includes more than 1,000 students with SAT scores above 1550, more than double the number who had similar scores just four years ago.

Other high-growth areas include applicants to the Pratt School of Engineering, international applicants and students of color. This year, the university received 3,343 applications from students who want to pursue engineering, an increase of more than 1,000 from five years ago. The number of Native American applicants almost doubled from last year’s total. And this year’s pool of applicants included 1,221 Latino students, a 13 percent increase from last year; 2,085 African-American students, a 12 percent increase from last year; and 4,718 Asian and Asian-American students, a 17 percent increase from last year.

In addition, 1,985 international students have applied for admission, nearly double the number of international applicants five years ago.

“Since the university expanded the financial aid program a few years ago to include a number of international students, we’ve seen a steady increase in the number of students from foreign countries who are interested in Duke,” Guttentag said.

In early April, slightly more than 3,000 top high school students from across the country and around the world will receive letters of acceptance to Duke.

As in previous years, the admissions office will notify applicants of their admissions decisions online as well as through the mail. The university expects 1,640 of the admitted students to enroll this fall, including 470 who were admitted in December through the Early Decision program.

Although it is too soon to assess the overall strength of the applicant pool, indications are this will be the most qualified group of applicants in Duke’s history, Guttentag said.

“That is something of a good news-bad news situation,” he said. “It’s wonderful that so many intelligent, accomplished students are interested in attending Duke, but it means we’ll need to deny admission to a good number of students whom we would have admitted just a few years ago.”

As in previous years, many of the applicants applied for financial aid. More than 40 percent of Duke undergraduates receive financial assistance from the university in the form of grants, loans and work-study jobs. The annual average grant to a financial aid recipient for the 2004-05 academic year was $21,592. The cost to attend Duke, including room and board, was $41,239 in 2004-05.

For U.S. citizens and permanent residents, Duke’s admissions policy is “need blind,” which means that applicants are accepted regardless of their ability to pay for college. Duke will meet 100 percent of demonstrated financial need for all admitted students requiring aid.

[TommyDale]

You did notice that you posted the 2006 application numbers, right? They are off more than 20% this year (2007), after the Duke LAX case.

[Ready4Freddy]

TD, I think it was Duke's early admissions apps that were down 20% - the total apps from the 2007 Freshman class are still not available.

united1000's post of the article concerning 2006 apps (before the Hoax started, of course) will serve as a good baseline to compare this year's performance.

[pepperhead]

His main focus is this: "Hadn't the boys been indulging in their sexual mores (i.e. enjoying the company of a stripper), then they would never have had to deal with any of this crap." In other words, these three should had been in their rooms being studious instead of boozing it up with their frat pals.

This party took place over spring break.

[Ready4Freddy]

That being said, the 20% drop is stunning. I think most of us, and all others with at least half a brain, attribute that drop to Nifong's criminal behaviour & the Duke admin's actions or lack thereof in this case; others seem to want to blame it on the alleged 'loutish' behaviour of the players themselves...

TD, I think it was Duke's early admissions apps that were down 20% - the total apps from the 2007 Freshman class are still not available.

[Neverforget01]

My student is a senior in high school--his guidance office advised students to apply to Duke if they had the slightest interest because "it should be an easier year to get in." I don't think we can look at the # of applicants, but the quality of those accepted. Watch too, for the college rankings that should come out later this year.

I would think Duke would be wise to unload Brodhead ASAP.

[El Gran Salseron]

"I weonder if it gave Brodhead pause............and indigestion."

I was thinking Nifong, Meehan, the AV and Brodhead.....not just Brodhead. :-)

Hopefully, they'll all wind up broke and serving hard time.

[Ohioan from Florida]

LOL. That's great! ;-)

[Ken H]

KC Johnson's devastating look at the ID session conducted by our old friend, Herr Gottlieb:

http://durhamwonderland.blogspot.com/2007/01/only-evidence-left.html

[luv2ski]

The early decision applications were down 20% this year. We don't know about the regular applications as those were due in early January. Early apps were down at many schools nationwide so it may mean nothing.

[supercat]

Fact is that if the party went on uneventfully, not too many people would be keen on the knowledge that they partied with a stripper, other than those who want to use that fact as blackmail material.

Actually, you raise an interesting point. Suppose the party had gone off uneventfully, but someone five years down the road tried to blackmail one of the students with pictures showing he was at a party where a stripper was paid to appear. If the student refused to pay and the blackmailer went public, would anyone notice?