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Duke Lacrosse Open Thread

The Dukesters need a new thread, comments are overflowing at the last one. In today's Duke lacrosse player news:

  • Coach breaks silence--Basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski discusses the scandal caused by the rape allegations
  • USA Today editorial saying the facts are growing shorter for Nifong, i.e., the case keeps unraveling
  • Michael Gaynor in the Post Chronicle tells the accuser to pray and apologize and calls her by her real name in a very nasty opinion piece. I'd still like for commenters not to do that just yet.

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    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#1)
    by Alan on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 11:45:38 AM EST
    imho concocted:
    If all of these boys had been under the authority of said granny, they would be the 2006 NCAA men's lacrosse champions.
    No doubt Nifong will drag said granny screaming to the gaol now that you have confirmed her negligence as a proximate cause for the false accusation. You, of course, will advise the poor woman to waive the right to counsel and the right to silence.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#2)
    by Lora on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 12:03:25 PM EST
    Jeez, it takes more than a couple of lunch times to read all these posts, unless you're a speed reader, which I'm not. Still catching up. But I want to reply to mik and january. As to the relevance of the abc11 story, hey it is just one of many examples of errors about the case in the news. That's all. I brought it up again as an agreement with putting the term journalists in quotations, based on my own personal experience. People have been saying that these little errors are irrelevant. Little errors add up. When they influence how people view the case, they matter. January, I am merely replying to commenters who have opinions about my post. You keep on harping as to how I am harping on it. I happen to dislike letting errors stand uncorrected, as many of us do. mik posted: Posted by mik June 21, 2006 06:18 AM Lora: The quote from the story that you claim is incorrect: The alleged victim called her "Nikki" that night. According to the report, neither woman told police that Roberts also performed at the lacrosse team's party. It's subtle, but the point is that at the Kroger parking lot that night, Kim didn't tell the police she danced at the party and "Precious" didn't tell police the woman that drove her to the Kroger danced at the party. She talked of "Nikki" dancing, but didn't identify her as the owner of the car the police pulled her from at Kroger. It wasn't until nearly a week later that Sgt. Shelton identified Kim Roberts through her escort agency as the other dancer that night. Posted by mik June 21, 2006 06:21 AM In other words, Lora, the story is talking about Sgt. Shelton's report from the early morning hours of March 14 ONLY. AT THAT TIME, Sgt. Shelton had NO IDEA that the owner of the car in the Kroger parking lot was "Nikki." Kim Roberts told police she picked up "Precious" from the side of the road near 610 N. Buchanan. And "Precious" didn't say much of anything (other than "No"). mik, The point of the story is that the AV kept changing her story, not that Sgt. Shelton didn't know who "Nikki" was. The title is: "Police Report: Alleged Victim Changed Story." She didn't. She correctly stated that another dancer besides herself danced that night. Using the dancer's pseudonym is not changing her story.
    The alleged victim called her "Nikki" that night. According to the report, neither woman told police that Roberts also performed at the lacrosse team's party.
    To substitute the proper noun "Roberts" for the pronoun "her" which represents the name Roberts:
    The alleged victim called Roberts "Nikki" that night. According to the report, neither woman told police that Roberts also performed at the lacrosse team's party.
    Untrue. The AV meant Roberts and the article says so. The AV didn't change her story. And...yes I definitely have speculations on KIM's changing story. Just haven't caught up yet. Later.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#3)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 12:12:31 PM EST
    Alan, Said granny is dead.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#4)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 12:13:10 PM EST
    Well, I have now been hit over the head by the board's three resident radical feminists, i.e., imho, pb and "durga_is_my_homey" and I have survived to live another day, much to their dismay I would think. I would note that the board's other prominent AV supporter, Lora, is not remotely associated with this unique group. These three will continue on spewing their hatred of "the White Man" and all the things said "Man" has done. It is the unifying principal in their religion, and the Duke boys will be made to pay. Indeed, one member of this group is so wedded to her "belief system" that she cannot even show empathy for the wrongly accused when she herself claims to have been wrongly accused and had her life ruined because of it. That, is serious faith. Another member hates all things "Duke" as well as the foregoing hatred of the "White Man" and is determined to bring about the destruction of these Duke boys by supporting a race pandering DA and pointing out journalistic errors. Finally, a third member of this group pops up occasional to spout off in incoherent fashion about tending to rape victims never mind that there is no rape victim here, and, indeed, the only victims are the Duke boys. These boys do not deserve this and I hope all reasonable members of this board would agree.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#5)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 12:23:13 PM EST
    Has anyone heard from the AV lately?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#6)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 12:34:37 PM EST
    Lora: This is the story we are discussing, are we not? If it is not, I apologize. I have apparently been debating the points at hand under a misunderstanding. If it is the article we are discussing, please read the first paragraph:
    The woman who accused three Duke lacrosse players of raping her changed her story and appeared to fake being unconscious, according to a police report obtained Friday by Eyewitness News.
    The story is dealing new information obtained from the report made by Sgt. J. C. Shelton regarding the 911 calls made on March 13 & 14 regarding racial epithets and the Kroger disturbance. NOWHERE in this report does it say that the accuser IDENTIFIED Kim Roberts as "Nikki." She said she danced with a "Nikki," but she doesn't idenfity her as the driver of the car at the Kroger. In fact, the accuser makes no mention of how she got to the Kroger. Indeed, the name "Kim Roberts" (or "Kim Pittman") is not recorded ANYWHERE in Shelton's report. It does not say anywhere that the accuser identified Kim Roberts as "Nikki." Shelton doesn't learn that "Nikki" is Roberts until he calls Angels Escort Service on 3/20/06 (the page following Shelton's written statement). What was that word, wumhenry? Sisyphean?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#7)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 12:35:53 PM EST
    An affidavit was filed today in support of the bond reduction for Reade. Here's a link to an article that discusses it. I hope I've done this link correctly.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#8)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 12:38:11 PM EST
    Correction: It never indicates that Shelton ever learns the identity of "Nikki." It is Himan who placed the call to Angels Escort Service and subsequently learned the identity of "Nikki."

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#9)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 12:41:23 PM EST
    Who here believes a gang rape was perpetrated on the AV by Seligmann, Finnerty and Evans? Anyone?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#10)
    by barry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 12:43:58 PM EST
    And...yes I definitely have speculations on KIM's changing story. Just haven't caught up yet. Later.
    The only "changes" in Kim's story is her claim that the AV left the car to retrieve her purse (originally "left the car because she felt more money was to be made") and her later *addition* that she went back in the house to look for her but couldn't find her. The purpose of that "addition" was to give the false rape a window of opportunity. It was a malicious statement on her part against the boys. Shame on her. However, in her pathetic attempt to corroberate the AV's account, she has discredited a key part of her story -- the event right before the rape in the bathroom. The dramatic separation at the master bedroom door. It didn't happen, and that's enough to conclude that the rape is a fabrication. Now let's talk about the AV's changes in her story. How about her claim to the sane nurse that Kim carried her on one side and "Brett" carried her on the other all the way to the back of the house while she kept telling them "no". That conflicts greatly with the search warrent acount which is based on her written statement. Or can you reconcile them?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#11)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 12:44:16 PM EST
    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#12)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 12:50:56 PM EST
    Heck, who here believes the accuser had consensual sex with anyone at the party (other than Kim Roberts)? Bob, I think we were both going to the same point earlier. I didn't couch mine as gently as you did. It just irks me to see people who are willing to cloak her with the mantle of Victimhood. They claim she's not responsible for the complete and utter mess she has made with her life. She couldn't help it. It was beyond her ability to pull herself up out of the disadvantaged situation in which she found herself. Nope. Claiming she is less than capable is claiming that she is less than complete. Isn't that what the civil rights movement was fighting against?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#13)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 12:57:49 PM EST
    the piece wasnt nasty, it was real she needs to hear the truth

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#14)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 01:02:45 PM EST
    mik posted:
    It just irks me to see people who are willing to cloak her with the mantle of Victimhood. They claim she's not responsible for the complete and utter mess she has made with her life. She couldn't help it. It was beyond her ability to pull herself up out of the disadvantaged situation in which she found herself.
    Can you name these people?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#15)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 01:15:53 PM EST
    cpinva posted:
    it would have been leaked by someone, probably some low level employee in the DA's office, for a nice piece of change, to a tabloid. i guarantee it. if you truly think it would remain a secret, i have a bridge for sale...
    Couldn't someone who the works in the private lab have done that? Why do you assume the source of the leak was the DA's office?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#16)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 01:48:18 PM EST
    Long time reader, first time commenter. I've been following this board almost since the beginning. The conversation has been much more intelligent here than on other boards. Until lately.
    Posted by Bob In Pacifica June 21, 2006 01:41 PM Who here believes a gang rape was perpetrated on the AV by Seligmann, Finnerty and Evans? Anyone?
    Can I take a page from imho's book and assume that since no one has answered this question, no one believes a gang rape was perpetrated by Seligmann, Finnerty and Evans? Does anyone believe Precious was raped by anyone on the LAX team? Sexually assaulted? Assaulted?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#17)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 01:52:37 PM EST
    As time ticks by in Duke's rape case, facts grow short
    It also is sorely testing the justice system's fairness....
    ...What's missing is a keener, calmer sense of justice. The judge in the case, Ronald Stephens, says he won't hold a trial for another year, despite defense pleas for a speedy trial.
    To elevate this case over others would be unfair, Stephens says, and while that might seem reasonable, it is dead wrong. This is not just any other case. It is one that has scarred both the accused and the accuser while stirring racial animosity. That damage should not be perpetuated.
    Further delays benefit no one. They just tarnish a legal system that, under the klieg lights, is showing some ugly blemishes.
    From a transcript of the hearing:
    OSBORN: Yes, sir. This is a serious case.
    STEPHENS: I deal with serious cases every day, and frankly I respect the seriousness of this case. But this case is not going to jump ahead of the line of all the other cases that we have here or be handled in any other way. I surely respect everyone here and the seriousness of this. But frankly, it takes priority, but we have other cases that take priority, too. And we're not going to stop what we're doing to make sure that we accommodate everybody inappropriately....
    OSBORN: Did we just move it for a second setting? Put it on for June 19th for a second setting?
    STEPHENS: Well we can do that. We have other cases that are on June 19th. Frankly, administratively, are you satisfied that you have all of the discovery? I don't normally move it to a second setting until all the discovery has been complied with because frankly if you get too far along in the settings where you're not in a position to be able to keep -- to move it on.
    OSBORN: We want to -- I want a trial as fast as we can. This young kid wants to go to school in the fall.
    STEPHENS: OK.
    OSBORN: And he can't until this is resolved.
    STEPHENS: Well I mean, I understand and appreciate that. But again, given the number of cases that we've got in front of it and everything else, I can't surely can't assure you of that. All I can do is comply with your requests if they're reasonable. Mr. D.A., do you care if he goes to second?
    NIFONG: Not really.
    STEPHENS: You have turned over everything you got?
    NIFONG: I turned over everything I have. My position is we're likely to at some point ...


    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#18)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 01:55:33 PM EST
    IMHO - What is your point?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#19)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 02:01:31 PM EST
    smokinburt posted:
    Can I take a page from imho's book and assume that since no one has answered this question, no one believes a gang rape was perpetrated by Seligmann, Finnerty and Evans?
    Hi smokinburt. What does that mean? smokinburt posted:
    Does anyone believe Precious was raped by anyone on the LAX team? Sexually assaulted? Assaulted?
    I've never said I believed her claims, but I'd like to see the prosecution's case before I make the declaration that I disbelieve her. Only seems fair.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#20)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 02:14:59 PM EST
    noname replied to imho (in callous disregard for Newport's desperate plea)
    IMHO - What is your point?
    The author seems to be implying that judge Stephens is callously and needlessly delaying the trial.
    That damage should not be perpetuated.
    I didn't get that impression from watching the hearing or reading the transcript.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#21)
    by wumhenry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 02:22:45 PM EST
    On June 21, 2006 at 08:34 AM inmyhumbleopinion wrote:
    the persistent wumhenry posted:
    The ineffable IMHO wrote:
    Is it that the "stripper" is presumably getting paid for these dates that it is reasonable to consider her v@gina could be injured during one of them?
    Who said it was injured? Diffuse swelling is a condition, and apparently not an abnormal one.
    You keep trying to nail me, wum, but you keep missing. Don't give up. It is from jk's post.
    Wrong. I was quoting from a message you posted at 7:33AM yesterday (6/21). The message included a quote from jk, but those are your words. Look it up.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#22)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 02:23:16 PM EST
    imho, My apoligies, I misread this post of yours.
    Posted by inmyhumbleopinion June 21, 2006 10:30 AM cpinva, If you do not reply to this I will not take it to mean that you could not refute any of my points. I will consider no reply may be your response to Newport's plea to Talk Left's commenters:


    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#23)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 02:27:39 PM EST
    IMHO - I just don't see how the transcript contradicts what the author is saying. Oh well.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#24)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 02:29:23 PM EST
    Lets see, IMHO: Victoria Peterson, Durham activist Houston Baker, Jr., Duke Professor of English Jesse Jackson, Rainbow Coalition Ruth Sheehan, N&O editorial writer Erin Texeira, AP writer Timothy B. Tyson, Writer for the News & Observer Cash Michaels, Wilmington Journal writer Malik Zulu Shabazz, leader of the New Black Panther Party How's that for starters? I have links for all of these, but I think I overloaded the software and wasn't allowed to post all in one message.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#25)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 02:32:38 PM EST
    From the (poorly edited) article-
    You told The News & Observer that the Duke party was the first time you had been hired to dance provocatively for a group. Both hirer and hiree were at fault in that respect, and then it worsened catastrophically.
    Ie., "you must also be responsible for those 'boys' and their subsequent behavior which I won't mention as I know they know better but don't want to acknowledge they did something wrong".
    [---], a false claim or rape hurts everyone.
    Man, what a s*itty editing job. So, is anybody ever going to suggest these "boys" be accountable for the behavior on their part we are aware of? Is anybody going to say, "hey, come forward and man-up to what was said by whom"? Let us know who said "thank your grandpa for my cotton shirt!"? Let us know who said, "(she is/they're) just a stripper". Let us know who said, "(...)shove this broom handle up your (a*s/whatever)"? I mean, my gosh, even Kim has been honest about her past/actions and she isn't even charged with a crime. Newport (whose desperate pleads are being ignored)-
    Well, I have now been hit over the head by the board's three resident radical feminists, i.e., imho, pb and "durga_is_my_homey"
    "Hit over the head"? You got asked questions to substantiate your own comments and got an understandable reaction to your more melodramatic incessant ones. Or are we responsible for those? If so, you may want to give Michael J. Gaynor a call. And radical feminists? Ha-ha-ha-ha!
    I have survived to live another day, much to their dismay I would think.
    "Dismay"? Your off-the-wall comments made me laugh, though for intellects sake I'd still like to know how you concluded imho hates whites/men. I think s/he has been nothing but fair. And funny.
    These three will continue on spewing their hatred of "the White Man" and all the things said "Man" has done.
    When did I say I hated "the White Man"?
    It is the unifying principal in their religion,
    Are you Ann Coulter?
    and the Duke boys will be made to pay.
    These men (looks like I've bee more respectful to men in that regard than you. They are men after all) got criticized by me for their comments, behavior, and lack of accountability. Further, analyzing information both ways it can go is what people should do. Unless you think white men should be exempt from as much...
    Finally, a third member of this group pops up occasional to spout off in incoherent fashion about tending to rape victims never mind that there is no rape victim here, and, indeed, the only victims are the Duke boys.
    Oh, d*mn, I was hoping this one would be me-
    Another member hates all things "Duke" as well as the foregoing hatred of the "White Man" and is determined to bring about the destruction of these Duke boys by supporting a race pandering DA and pointing out journalistic errors.
    It is more off the handle and ridiculous. But forgive for being on a time-limit, diminishing my time to compose a post. Otherwise, I'd post in a coherent fashion about the behavior of rape victims.
    Does anyone believe Precious was raped by anyone on the LAX team? Sexually assaulted? Assaulted?
    I believe she could have been, I believe she could be lying. I don't believe, given what I've studied about rape victims, inconsistencies/lies about details of a case amounts necessarily to the claim of rape being a lie (especially when it wasn't reported when the alleged victim felt comfortable about it, rather she just kind of ended up with police). I like to see everything in order to consider every possibility both ways that can account for anything deemed problematic. However I have seen/heard only one side (that of which is not innocent of misleading, hypocrisy, and flat-out lying). That hasn't stopped others from deciding what really happened already, and that is fine, but it has unfortunately amounted to falling on old stereotypes and tactics historically found in rape-cases in addition. And, as I've said, I don't believe the possibility of her lying - or the nature of her profession, or the perception that the "white man always gets blamed" - exempts the men from their own bad behavior, what they've said, and their lack of accountability. Or that it justifies the excuses that have been made for them, the complete lack of acknowledging it was as bad as it was, and totally holding the AV to a higher standard than them. The reason I comment about that is because for one it is happening so much, for two it is something I can say I know has happened. Don't want it to distract from the case/facts/details? Don't lay it out on the table to distract from the details.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#26)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 02:34:07 PM EST
    smokinburt replied to imho (in callous disregard for Newport's desperate plea)
    imho,
    My apoligies,I misread this post of yours.
    cpinva,
    If you do not reply to this I will not take it to mean that you could not refute any of my points. I will consider no reply may be your response to Newport's plea to Talk Left's commenters:
    Hi again smokinburt, Oh. hahaha. As you now know, that was just a little snark. I hope you keep commenting.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#27)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 02:37:28 PM EST
    noname posted:
    IMHO - I just don't see how the transcript contradicts what the author is saying. Oh well.
    I'm just putting the transcript out there so readers can form their own impression.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#28)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 02:42:24 PM EST
    Durga_is_my_homey posted;
    Newport (whose desperate pleads are being ignored)
    hahaha.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#29)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 02:42:58 PM EST
    Hi Smokinburt, You wrote:
    Can I take a page from imho's book and assume that since no one has answered this question, no one believes a gang rape was perpetrated by Seligmann, Finnerty and Evans?
    That's not Imho's book. That's Bob in Pacifica's book. In my experience, Imho tends to avoid "proof by assumption," whereas Bob in P. does little but. Bob in Pacifica's question that he likes to repeat over in over like a child practicing to play the trumpet is meaningless to me. We haven't heard the prosecution's case. Even a motion to dismiss requires hearing the prosecution's case. I know "due process" is a joke to some people here, who complain about the expense, but to me it is a promise of citizenship. It's why we fight. To answer Bob's trumpet blasts, I don't believe the rape happened, nor do I believe the rape didn't happen. The problem space has not been properly carved out, even as a simple matter of procedure. As a substantive matter, we don't know what the Prosecution time line is, and we don't know where the defendants were when the accuser was in the bathroom. That's a lot not to know.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#30)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 02:46:38 PM EST
    Durga - There are two things here I definitely agree with you about: 1. The Michael Gaynor article is so badly written that I was embarrassed reading it at times. 2. The assumption that you all are radical feminists was pretty funny. In his defense, though, I think Newport was using "radical" to indicate degree, as opposed to using it as a particular feminist philosophy distinct in many ways from main stream feminism. I could be wrong about this, of course.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#31)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 02:49:37 PM EST
    The prosecution has failed to provide a fact-based account of the sexual assault. The defense has provided evidence that raises "reasonable doubt" and precludes every scenario possible under which the accuser's tale could be plausible. As we know, that does not mean "game over" as too many defendants are wrongfully convicted based on police and prosecutorial misconduct, of the sort that Durham has exhibited on a national stage. Sadly, everyone will have to wait until a judge resolves this -- as another poster describes Nifong wins by running out the clock, the players wait, and justice loses. I don't expect Newport's "group of three" to acknowledge the strength of the defendants' arguments in IMHOfong's case because she enjoys the sparring too much. Not worth paying attention to for those who actually care about the truth and the lives of the defendants.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#32)
    by wumhenry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 02:58:59 PM EST
    Durga_ et al. wrote:
    I don't believe the possibility of her lying ... exempts the men from their own bad behavior, what they've said, and their lack of accountability.
    I.e., even if the accusations restated in the indictment are lies, the lacrosse players should be punished for bad behavior or something they said? What behavior? What statements?
    Or that it [i.e., the possibility that the indictment is based on lies] justifies the excuses that have been made for them, the complete lack of acknowledging it was as bad as it was, and totally holding the AV to a higher standard than them.
    What is the "it" that was so terrible? If the AV is lying (which the known evidence strongly indicates) and the lacrosse players aren't, taking her to task for bearing false witness is not applying a double standard.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#33)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 03:04:29 PM EST
    Durga -
    So, is anybody ever going to suggest these "boys" be accountable for the behavior on their part we are aware of? Is anybody going to say, "hey, come forward and man-up to what was said by whom"? Let us know who said "thank your grandpa for my cotton shirt!"? Let us know who said, "(she is/they're) just a stripper". Let us know who said, "(...)shove this broom handle up your (a*s/whatever)"? I mean, my gosh, even Kim has been honest about her past/actions and she isn't even charged with a crime.
    What does being "accountable" for their behavior mean to you in this context?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#34)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 03:05:08 PM EST
    Is there any proof that places any of the defendants in the bathroom with the AV, either singly or as a group, at any time during the evening? Some keep asking for proof that they weren't there. What's the proof that they were?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#35)
    by Lora on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 03:05:45 PM EST
    Almost caught up! Mik, Yes, that is the article I referred to. I understand that Shelton at the time apparently had no idea that Nikki" was "Kim." I still don't think that bit of information is related to the article stating that neither woman said Kim danced, even though they were referring to the police report. I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#36)
    by wumhenry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 03:08:43 PM EST
    PB wrote:
    I know "due process" is a joke to some people here, who complain about the expense, but to me it is a promise of citizenship. It's why we fight.
    Due process is not a joke, to be sure, but invoking "due process" as though it somehow prevents us from saying here whether we believe the AV's accusation is ridiculous.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#37)
    by Alan on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 03:18:59 PM EST
    PB posted:
    To answer Bob's trumpet blasts, I don't believe the rape happened, nor do I believe the rape didn't happen. The problem space has not been properly carved out, even as a simple matter of procedure. As a substantive matter, we don't know what the Prosecution time line is, and we don't know where the defendants were when the accuser was in the bathroom. That's a lot not to know.
    You've destroyed your own case. If we don't know these things then the accusation has not been sufficiently tested to justify putting the defendants on trial. There are many things in your Bill of Rights. Several, yourself among them, have demanded in these threads that those rights be ignored or waived. What is not in your Bill of Rights is a right of alleged victims to have untested accusations sent to trial. Another DA disgraces N.C.
    But someone else apparently won't take the case unless Nifong himself asks to be relieved. The law apparently puts that power in his hands alone.
    In a state whose lawmakers truly valued justice in their "criminal justice" system, someone else would have the power to remove prosecutors who've gone off the rails. The attorney general comes to mind, or the chief justice.
    But in North Carolina, lawmakers seem to put local prosecutors at the top of the judicial heap. As they've demonstrated lately, DAs can get away with lying to judges and lawyers in order to send innocent people to death row. They can get away with lying to the public in order to win re-election.
    At least have the honesty of your convictions. If grand juries are just camouflage for unfettered prosecutorial discretion, then abolish them in favour of allowing prosecutors to bring charges at will. Equally, if you are serious that the defendants' conduct (apart from the alleged rape) merits some punishment I suggest you start your engines for a racial vilification law, the prohibition of stripping and other measures.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#38)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 03:21:59 PM EST
    PB wrote:
    I know "due process" is a joke to some people here, who complain about the expense, but to me it is a promise of citizenship. It's why we fight.
    The most basic element of "due process" is the state following the rules in its investigation. In this instance, Nifong has broken just about every rule in the book--prejudicial public statements (NC Ethics Rule 3.6), refusing to consider exculpatory evidence NC Ethics Rule 3.8), ignoring the state guidelines on witness ID's, demanding DNA samples on the basis of group identification and then failing to use the samples as he promised the court he would. And now we have defense allegations that he misled the judge in obtaining the order for those samples. It's kind of hard to invoke due process to defend Nifong's actions, or to argue that his case ought to move forward.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#39)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 03:22:29 PM EST
    Durga, you said, in part:
    I mean, my gosh, even Kim has been honest about her past/actions and she isn't even charged with a crime.
    Could you please give me one or two examples of this?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#40)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 03:24:29 PM EST
    Posted by inmyhumbleopinion June 21, 2006 03:34 PM Oh. hahaha. As you now know, that was just a little snark. I hope you keep commenting.
    I've been following this case very closely from the beginning. As a University of Colorado graduate, I certainly see some parallels to the allegations made against our football team. A great read on the subject is the book "Buffaloed: How Race, Gender and Media Bias Fueled a Season of Scandal". In fact I just pulled up the book on Amazon and the latest customer reviewer wrote, "The young men of the CU football team, their coaches, and the University suffered unnecessarily because of a DA with a political agenda, weak university administration, and a few women who were misguided by legal, media, and social pressure." Sound familiar to anyone?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#41)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 03:46:58 PM EST
    smokinburt -
    Sound familiar to anyone?
    I'm a CU grad as well, and have seen the same similarities throughout this circus.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#42)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 03:54:48 PM EST
    wumhenry replied to imho (in callous disregard for Newport's desperate plea)
    Wrong. I was quoting from a message you posted at 7:33AM yesterday (6/21). The message included a quote from jk, but those are your words. Look it up.
    Yes, wum, I know. In my reply to you: Posted by inmyhumbleopinion June 21, 2006 08:34 AM I said:
    It is from jk's post. We were speaking in general terms:
    I pointed out the phrase he used from the very post you are talking about. I quoted him and used exactly his own phrase in my reply to make my point. from jk's post:
    is it absolutely reasonable for the jurors to consider the evidence of her "dates" as a possible alternative explanation for her injuries?
    I was comparing "college girls" and "married women" to "strippers." We had brought the discussion beyond this case and these strippers. Posted by inmyhumbleopinion June 21, 2006 07:33 AM
    How about a "college girl" with an active social life? What if she went out with seven different men in the week before she claimed she was raped. If she says none of the dates involved v@ginal sex is it absolutely reasonable for the jurors to consider the evidence of her "dates" as a possible alternative explanation for her injuries?
    How about a married woman that slept with her husband every night of the week preceeding her alleged rape? If she says they did not engage in v@ginal sex is it absolutely reasonable for the jurors to consider the evidence of her sleeping in the same bed as her husband as a possible alternative explanation for her injuries?
    Keep trying, wum. Even a broken clock is correct twice a day, unless, I as suspect, you are running on military time.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#43)
    by wumhenry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 03:57:15 PM EST
    Alan wrote:
    If grand juries are just camouflage for unfettered prosecutorial discretion, then abolish them in favour of allowing prosecutors to bring charges at will.
    Although, as this case seems to show, a grand jury may bamboozled by a prosecutor who withholds key evidence, the conclusion that we should do away with grand juries is a non sequitur. To support that conclusion, you need a convincing demonstration that grand juries never curb, or inhibit, prosecutorial excess.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#44)
    by ding7777 on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 04:04:26 PM EST
    I said relative to man the who served nearly 20 years in prison for a raping a woman he had never set eyes on. Tell that guy how awful it is the Duke University lacrosse season was cancelled, some boys may miss a few semesters, Evans lost his job on Wall Street and how their parents have to borrow $400,000 from friends or tie up $400,000 of their own assests to keep their kids from spending one minute behind bars.
    I can't imagine someone who was falsely imprisoned for 20 years not thinking how awful it is that the State has the power to ruin a coach's career, put finacial burdens on the parents, and derail the lives of (at least) 3 students

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#45)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 04:09:19 PM EST
    I'd note that most common law countries don't have grand juries in the american sense instead most of them have a hearing where a judge decides if there is enough evidence to indict. In many ways I think that would be a better system. Shouldn't the feminists be angry at the damage Precious has done to real rape victims? The old saw was that false rape allegations are very rare. Yet in the highest profile rape case in years the accuser has turned out be a liar.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#46)
    by wumhenry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 04:12:14 PM EST
    IMHO wrote:
    Keep trying, wum. Even a broken clock is correct twice a day, unless, I as suspect, you are running on military time.
    Your smugness is unwarranted; nothing you say in the message that ends with that remark has any bearing whatever on the point that I raised with you. My point was simply that your supposition that the AV's vagina was "injured" was ill-founded.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#47)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 04:15:57 PM EST
    Alan, you wrote:
    You've destroyed your own case. If we don't know these things then the accusation has not been sufficiently tested to justify putting the defendants on trial.
    We are precluded from knowing these things by the ethical guidelines the Prosecutor is supposed to follow. You wrote:
    At least have the honesty of your convictions. If grand juries are just camouflage for unfettered prosecutorial discretion, then abolish them in favour of allowing prosecutors to bring charges at will.
    That's your conviction, not mine. Khartoum, You wrote:
    The most basic element of "due process" is the state following the rules in its investigation.
    I don't agree with your interpretation of Nifong's "ethical violations." But even if I did, there is a process for dealing with ethical violations. An ethical violation isn't an automatic free pass for people accused of crimes, particularly when those so-called violations occured prior to the defendants even being charged. Think and Type, You wrote: Is there any proof that places any of the defendants in the bathroom with the AV, either singly or as a group, at any time during the evening?
    Some keep asking for proof that they weren't there. What's the proof that they were?
    I've got an eyewitness that says they were there. You got anybody who says they weren't? WumHenry, You wrote:
    Due process is not a joke, to be sure, but invoking "due process" as though it somehow prevents us from saying here whether we believe the AV's accusation is ridiculous.
    Oh, I agree. Of course, nobody , least of all me, has done that.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#48)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 04:22:27 PM EST
    I have finally caught up after taking a little time away. I don't recall who recommended to "pace yourself," but it's sound advice. To Newport: I don't know whether Heracles rested during the Twelfth Labor, but you have certainly earned a break from it. Also, I agree that the young men who stand accused do not deserve this. To barry: In rereading my comment yesterday in which I quoted your post (fingernail DNA), I fear that I could have given the impression that I found your argument to be unsound, but that is not true. Your use of the word "match" in reference to Mr. Evans afforded me an opportunity to hold forth on a matter about which I am deeply concerned, which is the use and misuse of scientific/forensic evidence. You strike me as a cogent and fair-minded voice, one among many who comment here. Please accept my apology if I offended you. To Photios: Your illustration of the process by which individuals are excluded or not excluded from the pool of "possibles" was excellent and clear. It should be emphasized, as I believe you did, that the process of analyzing a DNA mixture never yields individual profiles. Thus, one cannot determine that Mr. Evans is one of the sources in the mixture. To Bob in Pacifica: Yeah, where is she? Wrestling with her conscience? A vain hope, probably. As to your other question: No, I do not believe the gang rape alleged by the accuser happened. It could not have happened without creating a mountain of physical evidence, both in the house and on the accuser herself. Its utter absence, coupled with the existence of more than two accounts by each of the two strippers leads me to conclude that this is a hoax. That the players profess their innocence plays no role, but their consistency sounds a note in their favor. I believe this is how the DA should have reasoned. There was someone else I wanted to respond to, but I forgot. Later.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#49)
    by Lora on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 04:22:55 PM EST
    Ok, I have finally caught up and I am dizzy with the shifting issues that have been put forward. I hardly know where to begin. I have learned some information about SANE (or SAFE as they are sometimes called - Sexual Assault Forensic Examiner, I believe) exams from class and I have seen a rape kit. It was very sobering. I understand (if the women's center source in class was correct) that the exam and these kits are uniform throughout the nation. I must say that my first reaction with regard to this case was that if the defense really did make available the entire results of the two sheets of questions/diagrams of the SANE exam, that it would seem that no injuries related to the alleged attack, other than the vaginal trauma, which could be significant, were recorded. I doubt they would make a pdf file available because there are explicit diagrams. They could blank them out and describe any checks or markings. Wait, was there one? I sort of remember seeing a link a few hundred posts back. These inconsistencies bother me, though: the defense has insisted for some time that the AV arrived at the party extensively bruised and injured, and they have, so they claim, and so they leaked, pictures to prove it. Why were these injuries not recorded? Either she was bruised and injured or she wasn't. The defense can't have it both ways. What about reports of upper body injuries observed at the first hospital (sorry I don't have a link but I can look for it if folks wish it)? I believe imho asked about reports from the first hospital as well. We haven't heard squat about them from the defense. I learned that a rape exam takes on the average 4-6 hours. I believe the AV was there at Duke for 5 hours. It's definitely no picnic; it was described in class as a "gynecological exam gone mad," and it was the opinion of our presenter that it is very unlikely a woman would subject herself to it unless she had actually been raped and thought she'd want to press charges. She'd have to be extremely motivated to endure it otherwise. Some folks have speculated that the AV wanted to avoid a night at the substance abuse facility sleeping it off. Frankly it sounds far preferable to me. She might not even have had to stay there. She was regaining coherency when she arrived; chances are they wouldn't have kept her. I think speculation has ranged that she would have gotten in trouble with her folks or possibly even lose custody of her children. But she could have called a driver or boyfriend to come get her and she could have changed at her apartment first. I really doubt custody would have been in jeopardy. The main thing is if the kids are safe and cared for, and they were. I also learned that moisture ruins evidence. Should a rape victim feel an overwhelming need to change his/her clothes (yes men can be raped too of course), they should put them in a PAPER bag. If they put them in a plastic bag, they almost may as well not even bother, because condensation and moisture will ruin the evidence. What do we have in a bathroom, people? Condensation and moisture. Possible reason for lack of DNA evidence from the bathroom. BTW, for all you folks worried about spending 20 years behind bars for a false accusation for rape (I don't deny that this could happen), here's a reality check: in PA, the average length of time behind bars for any convicted sex crime? 128 days (handout in class).

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#50)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 04:24:48 PM EST
    wumhenry posted:
    Your smugness is unwarranted; nothing you say in the message that ends with that remark has any bearing whatever on the point that I raised with you. My point was simply that your supposition that the AV's vagina was "injured" was ill-founded.
    wum, read the post. I wasn't talking about the AV anymore, I had moved on to comparing what jurors might consider when the victim is a "college girl," a "married woman" or a "stripper." I was using jk's EXACT phrase in the comparison. My smugness is not about you being wrong, sooner or later you'll get it right. It is about the obvious fact you are reading every word I write. I like that.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#51)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 04:24:55 PM EST
    Forgot to add this case is a good argument for either abolishing rape shield laws or applying them to the accused as well as the accuser.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#52)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 04:46:07 PM EST
    PB wrote:
    I don't agree with your interpretation of Nifong's "ethical violations." But even if I did, there is a process for dealing with ethical violations. An ethical violation isn't an automatic free pass for people accused of crimes, particularly when those so-called violations occured prior to the defendants even being charged.
    Actually, that's not true: it's not at all uncommon for judges to throw out cases or convictions on the basis of legal technicalities. That's part of the system of "due process" that you celebrated in your post. Of course, conservatives don't usually like that--they denounce legal "technicalities"--but I hadn't gotten the sense from your previous postings that you were a George Bush fan. My apologies. In this case, it doesn't matter that the photo ID process, which violated state guidelines, occurred before arrests were made: they were the basis of the subsequent indictments. And I'd be curious to hear your reasons on why Nifong's myriad character denunciations didn't violate Rule 3.6; or how his refusal to consider exculpatory evidence offered by defense attorneys didn't violate Rule 3.8. Indeed, your argument--that if "violations occured prior to the defendants even being charged," the prosecution essentially has a free pass--would seem to conflict with the Bill of Rights, which generally is interpreted to mean that "due process" begins at the start of an investigation, not when the prosecution charges people. (Again, you and the Bush administration seem to have the opposite view on what constitutes "due process.") But, as we've all discovered, they have a different way of doing justice down in Durham.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#53)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 04:48:23 PM EST
    I've got an eyewitness that says they were there. You got anybody who says they weren't?
    Who's your eyewitness?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#54)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 04:54:02 PM EST
    Thinkandtype - besides the three indictees, don't you have about 22 eyewitnesses? Toss in the cab driver and the restaurant server and you've got 24.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#55)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 05:01:48 PM EST
    Sundance, I know. I was just curious about who PB's magical eyewitness to the contrary was.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#56)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 05:11:12 PM EST
    thinkandtype and Sundance: There is an eyewitness who places them there. Magical? Aha!

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#57)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 05:16:36 PM EST
    I thought she was referring to Kimmy. Who else could it have been?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#58)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 05:18:15 PM EST
    Gollum! He was always a sneaky sort. Always sneaking, sneaking...

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#59)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 05:20:50 PM EST
    Lora says:
    BTW, for all you folks worried about spending 20 years behind bars for a false accusation for rape (I don't deny that this could happen), here's a reality check: in PA, the average length of time behind bars for any convicted sex crime? 128 days (handout in class).
    Don't you think you are being dishonest here? The defendants are charged with a violent gang rape. The sentence for such a crime is far longer than the mean, and it is unlikely that privileged white boys would get much remission in my opinion.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#60)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 05:22:27 PM EST
    Sundance: Yesssss, my precioussssssss.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#61)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 05:26:22 PM EST
    I was gone for awhile, but I put my question up, whether anyone believed that a gang rape occurred, for good reason. I wanted to know what those who defend the AV, or who dislike Duke, or who want a trial, feel about the evidence. IMHO, as is her want, never directly comments on my posts anymore. Neither PB nor Durga are sure a rape occurred. I wanted to weigh the feeling of the pro-AVs (for lack of a better term) regarding the evidence that's been coming out over the last month. It's easy to play IMHO's game of dancing in the margins while avoiding the meat of the case. It appears that everyone here admits that there is not enough evidence beyond a reasonable doubt to convict the 3 men.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#62)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 05:33:42 PM EST
    Bob - I came to this site because I wanted to learn about the evidence and the legal issues. I've learned a whole lot, thanks to all of you. I am open to something coming out at a later date that might change my opinion, but at this point not only do I believe that there is a reasonable doubt, I believe they are truly innocent. Lora - thanks for the info on the SANE exam. One issue, though, is that I thought she preferred a SANE exam to the substance abuse facility was to avoid a tox screen. No one here seemed to agree with me, but I suspect that there was something that she wanted to keep unknown. Madison - Nifongollum wantses the preciousssss! The Precious was in the bathroom. Nifongollum was trying to get Precious. He was the magical witness! No wonder he won't drop the case.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#63)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 05:41:24 PM EST
    Sundance: He appears to be obsessed with Duke Lacrosse, yes? Perhaps there are recoverable memories in his subconscious, or...maybe I'd rather not know. She is magical because she can make herself disappear!

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#64)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 05:44:16 PM EST
    Khartoum, In response to my:
    An ethical violation isn't an automatic free pass for people accused of crimes, ...
    You wrote:
    Actually, that's not true: it's not at all uncommon for judges to throw out cases or convictions on the basis of legal technicalities.
    I would think in order for my statement to be "not true", as you claim, it would have to actually be "automatic" that ethical violations result in convictions being thrown out. Had you written "that's true," rather than "not true", in other words, your sentence would have actually made sense. The opposite of what you actually wrote. You wrote:
    Of course, conservatives don't usually like that--they denounce legal "technicalities"--but I hadn't gotten the sense from your previous postings that you were a George Bush fan.
    Got a chip on your shoulder much? You wrote:
    Indeed, your argument--that if "violations occured prior to the defendants even being charged," the prosecution essentially has a free pass--would seem to conflict with the Bill of Rights, which generally is interpreted to mean that "due process" begins at the start of an investigation, not when the prosecution charges people.
    I didn't write the exceptions to the guidelines. I just agree with Nifong that he hasn't violated them.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#65)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 05:45:58 PM EST
    mik replied to imho (in callous disregard for Newport's desperate plea):
    Lets see, IMHO:
    Victoria Peterson, Durham activist Houston Baker, Jr., Duke Professor of English Jesse Jackson, Rainbow Coalition Ruth Sheehan, N&O editorial writer Erin Texeira, AP writer Timothy B. Tyson, Writer for the News & Observer Cash Michaels, Wilmington Journal writer Malik Zulu Shabazz, leader of the New Black Panther Party
    How's that for starters? I have links for all of these, but I think I overloaded the software and wasn't allowed to post all in one message.
    Oh, Sorry. I thought you attributing "the mantle of Victimhood cloaking" to commenters here, but I see you were not. The post I was asking mik about:
    Heck, who here believes the accuser had consensual sex with anyone at the party (other than Kim Roberts)?
    Bob, I think we were both going to the same point earlier. I didn't couch mine as gently as you did. It just irks me to see people who are willing to cloak her with the mantle of Victimhood. They claim she's not responsible for the complete and utter mess she has made with her life. She couldn't help it. It was beyond her ability to pull herself up out of the disadvantaged situation in which she found herself.


    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#66)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 05:49:35 PM EST
    Earlier PB wrote: In my experience, Imho tends to avoid "proof by assumption," whereas Bob in P. does little but. IMHO does a whole lot of inferring. I would rather think that I do a lot of deduction. I think about the week-long argument with IMHO regarding the father's comment on the earlier gang rape. IMHO seemed to infer that the father didn't even know about the alleged rape until he was on TV being asked about it. I pointed out the curiousness of the mother and daughter lying to the father to conceal the rape for his benefit. I believe it was PB who found the article which had the father knowing about it and how the daughter was severely traumatized about it and got psychiatric help. I don't know who the source of the information for the article was but I presume it was from family members if not the AV herself. So if the father knew back then about the "gang rape" and he now says it didn't happen suddenly what I deduced from the original story seems to be accurate, certainly more accurate than IMHO's game-playing. But the introduction of a psychiatrist makes the story even more questionable. If a child reports to a doctor that she was raped, gang raped in this case, the doctor is obligated to report it to police authorities. So we have some kind of mental breakdown for the daughter at the age fourteen, we have no contemporaneous report of rape by the doctor to authorities, and we have a father who states on national TV that his daughter wasn't raped. The AV reports the rape three years later, but then does nothing to follow through with her charges. Maybe when this case collapses we'll find out more about this curious past incident, but it's beginning to sound like some kind of imagined antecedent to what the AV invented this time. Or so I deduce.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#67)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 05:49:42 PM EST
    Police Report: Alleged Victim Changed Story
    The report also shows inconsistencies with the story from the second dancer, Kim Roberts. The alleged victim called her "Nikki" that night. According to the report, neither woman told police that Roberts also performed at the lacrosse team's party.
    The alleged victim called her "Nikki" that night? And what did the alleged victim say about "Nikki?" from Sgt. Shelton's report:
    She said that she and "Nikki" danced and put on a show for the men at the party.
    According to the police report the accuser did tell Sgt. Shelton Roberts danced that night. From the police report, it can not be determined if Sgt. Shelton understood the woman the accuser called "Nikki" was Kim Roberts. From the police report, it can not be determined if the accuser was trying to shield that information from Sgt. Shelton. Therefore, from the police report, it can not be determined that the accuser was inconsistent in regards to Kim Roberts having danced at the party. The article lists it as an inconsistency, yet from the police report, that can not be determined. I think Lora is right.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#68)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 05:51:06 PM EST
    Hi Bob in Pacifica, You wrote:
    It appears that everyone here admits that there is not enough evidence beyond a reasonable doubt to convict the 3 men.
    I don't.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#69)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 05:58:31 PM EST
    Posted by PB June 21, 2006 06:51 PM Hi Bob in Pacifica, You wrote: It appears that everyone here admits that there is not enough evidence beyond a reasonable doubt to convict the 3 men. I don't PB, just to make this clear, you believe beyond a reasonable doubt, with enough certainty to send the three defendants to prison, that a gang rape was committed? That was the question asked. You are certain that there was a gang rape on the AV by Finnerty, Seligmann and Evans? Because earlier today you said: I don't believe the rape happened, nor do I believe the rape didn't happen. That's not a certainty beyond a reasonable doubt. You seem to be contradicting yourself here.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#70)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 05:59:36 PM EST
    Lora, I had a few responses to your comments. 1.
    in PA, the average length of time behind bars for any convicted sex crime? 128 days (handout in class).
    "Any convicted sex crime" would begin with minor offenses such as indecedent exposure and move all the way up to rape. As beenaround noted, that is FAR different from what the defendants face here: conviction on any one of the three charged offenses could result in substantial prison time. Did the handout give an average time for an exceptionally violent rape? 2.
    Some folks have speculated that the AV wanted to avoid a night at the substance abuse facility sleeping it off.
    I don't know that it would have been a one-night stay, and I don't know that the AV knew that either. And yes, it could earn her a child endangerment charge that, even if she could refute it, would be a major stressor. Likely, the kids would be given over to her parents' custody, but it could involve the State in her family until she worked things out. 3.
    She was regaining coherency when she arrived; chances are they wouldn't have kept her.
    I've learned not to suppose that I know how they do things in NC, but in my state she would not have been going home anytime soon. She was "in the system" by then, and she would have to wait to be cleared. Tox screening would have absolutely have been done, and in that case she would have no right to refuse it, as she may have done at DMC.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#71)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:02:16 PM EST
    Bob in Pacifica, You wrote:
    I would rather think that I do a lot of deduction.
    If, by deduction, you mean that you start with the answer you are seeking to prove and look in the data only for those factoids that support that argument, I think you are right about that. It's not an ideosyncratic epistomology. 75% of this board is made up of people who do that.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#72)
    by barry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:05:30 PM EST
    I've got an eyewitness that says they were there. You got anybody who says they weren't?
    Correction, you've got a "witness" who said that "Adam", Matt, and Brett were there. Adam, as you know, was called "Dan" by others. A rapist with two false names? Or was she thinking of Dan Flannery, someone who used the alias "Adam" in the call to the escort agency, someone who would have stuck out in her mind? Coicendtal? Nah. You've got a "witness" who alleged that Kim helped carry her to the house while she kept telling them "No". Not corroberated by Kim or the players. You've got a witness with no injuries to support "rape". No vaginal tearing, no ANAL injuries of any kind. You've got a "witness" who alleged that she and Kim held on to each other for dear life until they were finally separated by six men. Problem is, no one corroberates that either, and that's a key part of her story. In fact, both the players and "Nikki" give a totally different, consistent story. She went back in to retrieve her purse. There was no dramatic separation at the master bedroom door. Ergo, you've got a "witness" with zero credibility. Reade Seligmann, on the other hand, has not only a witness alibi but also a phone log alibi. Take a look.
    I was at the lacrosse party at 61 0 N. Buchanan Blvd. in Durham, NC on March 13 running over to March 14, 2006. After the two women danced for a few minutes in the main livingroom, they then left the main living room. 3. Shortly thereafter, I then left the residence through the back door and talked to Reade. As, I went out the back door, I did not see or hear anything unusual. Once outside, I saw Reade, who appeared normal in all respects. We were both tired fiom playing golf that afternoon, and we had practice the next day. In addition the dancers had stopped dancing and were obviously impaired when they left the main living room. Reade said he had just called a cab and asked if I wanted to leave with him. We walked down the alley to Watts Street, took a left and walked to the corner of Watts Street and Urban Avenue (about a block from 610 N. Buchanan Blvd.) to wait for the cab. Our plan was to go to the Cookout Restaurant, get takeout food, and go to our respective dorms.
    So apparently he was outside making phone calls. Not ejaculating in a crocodile's mouth.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#73)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:06:26 PM EST
    Bob, why do you bother. It's not worth it and they (the gang of three) are not worthy) of your eloquent arguments.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#74)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:13:55 PM EST
    Bob in Pacifica, You wrote:
    You seem to be contradicting yourself here.
    Much of the evidence I have neither seen nor heard. That being the case, I have no idea whether there is enough of it to convict the 3 men.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#75)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:14:10 PM EST
    Barry - he was not ejaculating in a crocodile's mouth with a condom on his head. Please endeavor to be accurate!

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#76)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:17:55 PM EST
    Barry, exactly, a rapist with two false names. Adam was id'd and he is known to be Dan but she didn't pick Dan so the only way Adam could be the rapist would be if Adam were also the codename for Reade, Colin or Dave Evans, i.e., "a rapist with two false names." Bites the DPB in the ass. This is a fine example of logic in action. Are you a Duke student?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#77)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:20:41 PM EST
    Barry, Thanks for that... You posted Reade's alibi witness claim that:
    In addition the dancers had stopped dancing and were obviously impaired when they left the main living room.
    Kim didn't sound at all impaired when she called 911, nor did she sound at all impaired at Kroger's... She said she didn't take her drink, maybe that's why. I wonder what made Reade's friend think she was impaired?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#78)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:22:29 PM EST
    Maybe because of the way she overreacted to the broomstick comment, that would be my guess.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#79)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:25:33 PM EST
    BTW, the security guard at Kroger smelled a strong smell of alcohol on Kim so maybe she wasn't quite so entirely sober as she says she was.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#80)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:26:27 PM EST
    PB said:
    I didn't write the exceptions to the guidelines. I just agree with Nifong that he hasn't violated them.
    Do you have a link where Nifong says he hasn't violated Rule 3.6 on prejudicial public statenments; Rule 3.8 requiring prosecutors to consider all evidence before indictment, even if it doesn't help the accuser; or NC Actual Innocence Commission's Guidelines requiring seven fillers for every suspect? I hadn't realized he made a statement that he hadn't violated these three provisions. As I said before, someone with an unlimited conception of prosecutorial power can support Nifong's actions--but it seems extraordinary for that same person to be celebrating "due process" at the same time.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#81)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:27:55 PM EST
    Sundance, you said:
    Barry - he was not ejaculating in a crocodile's mouth with a condom on his head. Please endeavor to be accurate!
    Thanks, I needed that visual to make me laugh a little about this whole frigging mess. The constant struggle to refrain from responding to some of our fellow (is it politically correct to call a female a "fellow"?) posters has worn me down today. I mean, if I didn't know better, I would think imho is flirting with Newport, by continuing her attempts to goad him into responding to her by mentioning him in every one of her answers to everyone else. Obviously, I have let myself get too immersed in following this board, but I am enjoying the Tolkien references about poor Nifongollum and his Preciouss. Those tricksy defense attorneys, and those wicked, wicked Lacrosserss who hurt his Preciouss.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#82)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:30:15 PM EST
    Sorry Sharon, but imho doesn't like men remember, and she especially doesn't like white men who graduated from Duke and played sports there.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#83)
    by weezie on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:31:29 PM EST
    And don't forget that false moustache that everybody was passing around, along with the two false code names. (I thought we needed an oldie but goodie right about now!)

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#84)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:33:51 PM EST
    Was it a Hitler moustache?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#85)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:36:17 PM EST
    PB, I asked if anyone believed the gang rape happened beyond a reasonable doubt. You said you didn't, then you said you did, then you didn't answer the question. Thanks for clarifying things. I deduce that what you want is not what you believe.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#86)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:37:00 PM EST
    I learned that a rape exam takes on the average 4-6 hours. I believe the AV was there at Duke for 5 hours. It's definitely no picnic; it was described in class as a "gynecological exam gone mad," and it was the opinion of our presenter that it is very unlikely a woman would subject herself to it unless she had actually been raped and thought she'd want to press charges. She'd have to be extremely motivated to endure it otherwise.
    Here, let me introduce you to Ms Tawana Brawley: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tawana_Brawley I'll refer you to the fact that they administered a rape kit. And this isn't the only case I've heard of where someone made a false accusation and got tested. Some alleged victims rather like ANY attention they get.
    in PA, the average length of time behind bars for any convicted sex crime? 128 days (handout in class)
    I'd be very sceptical about that, as he/she doesn't seem to break the sex crimes down by type. Here's a study quoted on wikipedia: Most societies consider rape to be a grave offense, and punish it accordingly. Punishment for rape in most countries today is imprisonment, but until the late twentieth century, some states of the U.S., for instance, could apply the death penalty in cases of aggravated rape, (Louisiana for example) indicating the severity with which the crime was viewed (the death penalty is still in use in countries with a significant social divide between the freedoms and status afforded to men and women). Castration is sometimes a punishment for rape and, controversially, some U.S. jurisdictions allow shorter sentences for sex criminals who agree to voluntary "chemical castration." In the Southern states of the U.S., the charge of rape was often used to justify vigilante groups ("lynch mobs") that would seize and kill men accused of rape, without due process or trial. Victims of lynching were typically, though not always, African American. (One historic exception was the lynching of Leo Frank, a Jewish American.) Members of the lynch mobs were rarely prosecuted or punished for these mob killings. In some such communities, any sexual interaction between an African-American male and a White (Caucasian) female was viewed as rape, which resulted in a large number of (presumably) innocent men, being murdered. This resulted from the fact that it was commonly believed that no White female would ever consent to sexual relations with a Black man. Rape of Black women by White men was a practice largely ignored or simply tolerated for many years, and local governments rarely punished such rapists in these cases. Prison sentences for rape are not uniform. A study made by the U.S. Department of Justice of prison releases in 1992, involving about 80 percent of the prison population, found that the average sentence for convicted rapists was 9.8 years, while the actual time served was 5.4 years. I know the fact that states used to impose the death penalty for rape ( and given lack of DNA testing back then I'm sure more than one innocent was put to death)somehow means that the evil patriarchy didn't take rape seriously enough. In fact, I believe some of those statutes are still on the books.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#87)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:39:54 PM EST
    Barry, You quoted:
    After the two women danced for a few minutes in the main livingroom, they then left the main living room. 3. Shortly thereafter, I then left the residence through the back door and talked to Reade. As, I went out the back door, I did not see or hear anything unusual. Once outside, I saw Reade, who appeared normal in all respects.
    Hey Barry... Where's the part about Seligman not being in the bathroom with the accuser... Am I missing something? What does "shortly thereafter" mean, by the way... Eleven minutes? He seems to have gone outside after Seligman called the cab, isn't that right?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#88)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:40:06 PM EST
    Newport wrote: BTW, the security guard at Kroger smelled a strong smell of alcohol on Kim so maybe she wasn't quite so entirely sober as she says she was. Bu-bu-but, she wouldn't lie? Would she?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#89)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:43:38 PM EST
    cib, Thanks for the post on criminal sentences for rape. 128 days seemed a little short. I guess rapists are now packing suitcases and heading for Pittsburgh.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#90)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:43:56 PM EST
    Gutsy Kim lie, Bob? No way.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#91)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:45:55 PM EST
    And, of course, what state is my son heading off to in August? Pennsylvania, to play a helmet sport at an elite, predominantly white school. And he likes to look at pictures of naked women. Damn, better just lock him up now, I suppose. He sounds just like the Duke lax team.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#92)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:49:08 PM EST
    thinkandtype asked: Is there any proof that places any of the defendants in the bathroom with the AV, either singly or as a group, at any time during the evening? No. Not even Roberts puts anyone in the bathroom with the AV. Only the AV says it happened. It all rests on the believability of the AV versus the believability of the DNA evidence, the time-stamped photographs and ATM receipts, witnesses at the Mexican restaurant, the taxi driver, the people at the party, and the various other versions of the story given up by the AV.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#93)
    by weezie on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:51:48 PM EST
    Yeah, that's right, a Hitler moustache! Years ago on this board some people were discussing a Groucho type moustache but the Hitler sounds so much more, I don't know, "right."

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#94)
    by weezie on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:54:01 PM EST
    Sharon, of course you know that Pat's Cheesesteaks in Philly are the best.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#95)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 06:56:50 PM EST
    Weezie - you just knew that Godwin's Law had to come into play here somewhere, didn't you?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#96)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:01:48 PM EST
    Newport: No accounting for taste, I suppose. I asked earlier, but didn't see a response: does anyone know when the hearing is supposed to start?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#97)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:02:40 PM EST
    PB, in my post about deducing from incomplete evidence (which is what we are working with here) I gave my opinion of the first alleged gang rape. A central question that arises is not "Did they really keep it a secret from the AV's father?" but "If there was a gang rape perpetrated on a minor, and she were treated by a psychiatrist for the trauma she suffered from it, why wasn't the gang rape reported to the authorities at the time?" Doctors are required to report sexual abuse of minors to the police, and gang rapes are nothing if not sexual abuse. It's a legitimate question, one which you ignore. We don't have an answer from the AV or the family, and we can't get one from the state or the psychiatrist because it's protected information. It strongly appears that there is something wrong with the story as we know it. In other words, it looks like a lie. If it's a lie perpetrated by the mother and daughter, perhaps to cover up an early onset of the AV's mental illness, then we have an explanation as to why the AV seems to slide so easily from one lie to another. She was raised that way. If there's a harmless, simple explanation I'm willing to entertain it. But first you have to stop ignoring the question.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#98)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:03:56 PM EST
    Weezie, I see you've gotten over gettin smacked upside your head by the pan wielding dear woman Ms. Blakely (who coincidentally, had increased the strength of the "gang of three" to the "gang of four," at least progress is being made.)

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#99)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:04:44 PM EST
    from Lora: the average length of time behind bars for any convicted sex crime? 128 days from cib: average sentence for convicted rapists was 9.8 years, while the actual time served was 5.4 years these are not inconsistent with each other if "ANY convicted sex crime" includes not just rape but everything down to 4th degree criminal sexual contact (butt-pinching) remember how "80% of all sexual assaults" morphed into "80% of all rapes"?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#100)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:08:23 PM EST
    weezie: when he and I were up there for his "official visit" they took us on a quick tour of Philly, and there was great debate among the coaches as to which place had the best cheesesteaks. I can't remember which one we went to, but it was definitely one of the highlights of the trip.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#101)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:09:04 PM EST
    Weezie wrote,
    And don't forget that false moustache that everybody was passing around, along with the two false code names.
    Sundance wrote:
    Was it a Hitler moustache?
    Thanks guys, I needed some laughs after getting smacked around so much today.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#102)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:22:25 PM EST
    Pure speculation: I wonder if the UNC medical report showed the same lack of non-sexual injuries to the AV as was seen at DMC? My point is, if she wasn't that injured when they saw here at DMC, but was when she went to UNC (maybe the reason for going there?) perhaps the driver who was supposed to get his share of the $400 was a tad upset when the AV came back with no money to show for the evening, and perhaps he expressed his displeasure by "kicking, hitting, choking" her. Nifong makes the argument, it took awhile for the bruises and swelling to show up; those injuries were from the night before. Which explanation do you find most "reasonable"?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#103)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:23:50 PM EST
    Maybe in the spirit of improvisation, David Evans glued two condoms to his upper lip, creating a dastardly Fu-Manchu style moustache. I mean, obviously, despite their nefarious preplanning and fine-tooth-comb cleanup (not to mention the speed and agility needed to conduct a 1/2 hour gang rape in two minutes in a crowded bathroom), they just weren't bright enough to figure out where those pesky condoms were supposed to go!

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#104)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:26:07 PM EST
    Interesting information from the FA's official statement about Kim Robert's being the one that wanted to turn a "trick" with one of the players but Precious was not down for it. The defense lawyers are going to slaughter her over that one with the Johnson statement and with all of Robert's testimony re the FA "wanting to make more money." I would pay to see that cross as all the PAID prior sexual liasons of the FA are gone through in excruciating detail. If anyone on this board thinks that the FA is EVER going to take the stand in this case they are just not paying attention.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#105)
    by Lora on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:28:17 PM EST
    beenaround, I wasn't trying to be dishonest. What I have said about 128 days being the average length of incarceration for any sex crime in PA is true AFAIK. Actually, I did make an error -- that number came from my class notes, not a handout. Sorry. I agree that a violent sex crime would probably get a longer sentence than a non-violent one. cib posted,
    Prison sentences for rape are not uniform. A study made by the U.S. Department of Justice of prison releases in 1992, involving about 80 percent of the prison population, found that the average sentence for convicted rapists was 9.8 years, while the actual time served was 5.4 years.
    Thanks for the information. While 5 years is considerably longer than 128 days, it is also considerably shorter than 20 years. I think that imposing the death penalty for rape or making the sentence for rape as severe or more severe than for murder, is wrong. Contrary to Matt Zash's opinion, rape is not the worst crime there is. Frankly I'd rather be raped and alive than murdered or disfigured or beaten to where I'd suffer a lifelong disability or...I'm sure I could think of more. I would venture to guess that the majority of us would agree. Murder and some other violent crimes are far worse, and the laws ought to reflect that. I still think an average of 128 days for any sex crime is shocking. Bob, I for one am not sure of anything about the case. Sharon, There is no child endangerment. The children were being looked after by the AV's parents. I suppose a positive drug test could trigger action by child welfare, if the case was active. If not, they wouldn't automatically check. Child welfare is plenty busy enough with existing reports to go and add more potential cases to their overworked load. I don't care what state you are in, there are way way too many cases. There is no reason to think the AV is a neglectful mother. She arranged babysitting for her two children. They weren't left unattended. That would be child welfare's main concern. Sharon, from your post on the player's statement,
    Once outside, I saw Reade, who appeared normal in all respects. We were both tired fiom playing golf that afternoon, and we had practice the next day. In addition the dancers had stopped dancing and were obviously impaired when they left the main living room. Reade said he had just called a cab and asked if I wanted to leave with him.
    There is nothing here that says where Reade was when he called the cab. I see no one has tackled the inconsistency of the defense reporting extensive bruising on the AV (upon arrival at the party, while dancing, and after) and the discovery documents apparently showing no injuries beyond a minor scratch or two.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#106)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:28:37 PM EST
    Sharon - the Duke upcoming court cases were just discussed, but I didn't catch any times. Sorry. Also, doesn't it strike anyone as odd that at UNC she told the story that she hit her head on the sink? Where did that come from? Newport - relax, big guy, it's been a slow news day, everything's been hashed and rehashed, and they are just taking shots. Glad I could put a smile on your face after your bathroom re-creation yesterday cracked me up at work. You are a Dookie?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#107)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:29:30 PM EST
    thinkandtype, good one, but you forgot about resyncronizing their watches and altering the memory of all the camera phones.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#108)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:32:42 PM EST
    Sundance, like water off a ducks back. I don't get to hear much talk like comes from the gang of three round these parts but I can take it. Yes.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#109)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:33:52 PM EST
    Lora, I will agree that "She arranged babysitting for her two children. They weren't left unattended. That would be child welfare's main concern." But did she always? An alcohol abusing, possible drug abusing, stripper/escort/prostitute would be someone the State would take a look at. Or, I think you might agree, it could be that the AV merely feared that her involuntary commitment might have that result. I don't know, maybe not child endangerment, but how about neglect?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#110)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:37:33 PM EST
    OMG Lora,
    There is no reason to think the AV is a neglectful mother.
    just when you were making progress. Read the Johnson statement over again and check out the interview some newspaper did with Brian Taylor and report back.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#111)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:38:25 PM EST
    I don't know how I'll ever be able to say the word "condom" again without thoughts of guys wearing them on their heads and glued to their upper lips.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#112)
    by barry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:41:56 PM EST
    Hey Barry... Where's the part about Seligman not being in the bathroom with the accuser... Am I missing something? What does "shortly thereafter" mean, by the way... Eleven minutes? He seems to have gone outside after Seligman called the cab, isn't that right?
    Yes, you're missing a lot. We have eyewitness testimony from Bissey and the Lax players that the AV returned to the house to retrieve her belongings at about 12:20-12:30. Bissey says about 12:30 while the Lax players according to one of the "team" attorneys say 12:20. 10 minute difference, but these estimitations indicate that she returned to the house *after* 12:14 at the very least -- the time when Robert Wellington met Reade outside the house, give or take a minute. Ergo, Robert's testimony shows that he was not in the bathroom with the accuser but with him. Of course you're going to say "that's not the prosecution timline". But it is. Eyewitness testimony supports the timeline. And even if Nifong tries to move it back, he has to contend with Reade's Verizon phone call alibi, which leaves a window of less than two minutes for a "rape". What is Nifong going to do, argue that Reade had someone make an alibi for him while he and the rapist with two false names and a fake mustache raped the AV in a bathroom? He's screwed.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#113)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:42:30 PM EST
    Interesting that the N&O wants the medical records unsealed.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#114)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:44:07 PM EST
    Where's Rainlilly?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#115)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:47:03 PM EST
    Barry wrote,
    Robert's testimony shows that he was not in the bathroom with the accuser but with him.
    you meant Robert Wellington the alibi affiant, correct?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#116)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:49:10 PM EST
    Ah, okay, now it makes sense. Thanks Newport.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#117)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:49:53 PM EST
    Sharon wrote: An alcohol abusing, possible drug abusing, stripper/escort/prostitute would be someone the State would take a look at. Or, I think you might agree, it could be that the AV merely feared that her involuntary commitment might have that result. I don't know, maybe not child endangerment, but how about neglect? I think one instance of getting loaded and taken to the drunk tank isn't going to be enough to have the state take away your children. But we have the stolen taxicab incident, too. And we also have the AV being committed for a mental illness for a week a year ago. It's quite possible that that incarceration may have had something to do with substance abuse along with an underlying mental disorder. Others here have speculated on it. If she came up with the rape story because she thought that going to involuntary lockup with cause the state to take away her kids, there must have been a lot more in her files than we know. And there may be.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#118)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 07:58:21 PM EST
    Was Rainlilly really Orinoco?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#119)
    by Lora on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:00:36 PM EST
    I knew I was forgetting something! Kim! Wild speculation time (you didn't think I was going to let you down, didja?). (BTW I am relaxing with a little rum and grape juice so if my speculations are a little more wild than usual, you will know why.) OK. For a while now I've been saying Kim has been leaving out some major details of the middle part of the evening, that is, when the AV supposedly went back inside, supposedly to make more money, supposedly leaving Kim in the car. Early on I pegged Kim as the one not to pass up a potential money making opportunity. I just couldn't see her waiting in the car while the AV went one up on her. You know? OK. This is my wild speculation: I'm thinking that if they both went back in, the AV was right. The player apologized and offered a deal and Kim's the one wanted to go in. I don't think the AV resisted as much as she said though. See, everybody tries to look good. She needed her shoe. The AV was pulled out of the car like she said, groped like she said, "helped" back inside by Kim and a player. They thought they'd be entertaining together but there were other plans. The AV wanted to stick with Kim, but Kim didn't care. Kim went to the master bedroom, and, well, made some illegal money. That's why she never told that part. Up till then, everything was legal. OK, question. Kim, the AV, and Bissey all have both women going back inside the house. Defense never did, to my knowledge. Is the defense right and Bissey wrong? Or is the defense holding out here too? Sharon and Bob, If child welfare had investigated her before and there was an active case, they might look into it if she had a positive tox screen. But if her parents are good at parenting and help her out with the kids when she needs them to, there is no neglect. They are being attended to.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#120)
    by barry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:02:34 PM EST
    I see no one has tackled the inconsistency of the defense reporting extensive bruising on the AV (upon arrival at the party, while dancing, and after) and the discovery documents apparently showing no injuries beyond a minor scratch or two.
    Because it's not important anymore? Whatever appeared in those photos may have been birth marks or pits in the skin that casted dark shadows or skin pigmentation differences seen in many African Americans or maybe the defense exggerated a bit. Who cares. Susan Filan has seen the medical reports, and she reports that no significant injuries were found. As for the anonymous "nurse" who claimed to have seen the accuser all bruised up, just a liar who wanted a piece of the action.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#121)
    by Lora on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:04:08 PM EST
    Barry, Where does Bissey himself say 12:30, or any time? Source?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#122)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:07:19 PM EST
    Lora - if the bruises were old and fading, would the SANE nurse put that in the report?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#123)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:08:03 PM EST
    As most of the characters in this case have, so has Orinoco become an icon. Long live Orinoco!

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#124)
    by weezie on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:15:13 PM EST
    Yes Newport, I'm back to my "inane" and "irrelevant" comments once again. You can't keep a smartass down forever. And Sundance, I am strongly of the hunch/opinion that FA was prescription shopping at UNC hospital the next day. She lost her Flexiril with the missing purse and maybe something tastier in that purse like Vicodin, Percocet. The docs at Duke wouldn't give her anything that strong so she rolled on over to UNC with the head banging story. Although I'm assuming it would not be allowed at trial, I'm thinking she has a history at Duke Hospital and the ER docs know her pretty well.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#125)
    by wumhenry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:15:44 PM EST
    mik wrote:
    What was that word, wumhenry? Sisyphean?
    No, Sisyphaean. ;)

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#126)
    by wumhenry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:17:23 PM EST
    In deference to Bob, I won't respond to IMHO's last message addressed to me. ;)

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#127)
    by weezie on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:18:55 PM EST
    Sundance, are you a Dookie? Or a Dukie?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#128)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:20:33 PM EST
    Is there a difference? Take your pick.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#129)
    by barry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:21:52 PM EST
    OK. This is my wild speculation: I'm thinking that if they both went back in, the AV was right. The player apologized and offered a deal and Kim's the one wanted to go in. I don't think the AV resisted as much as she said though. See, everybody tries to look good. She needed her shoe. The AV was pulled out of the car like she said, groped like she said, "helped" back inside by Kim and a player. They thought they'd be entertaining together but there were other plans. The AV wanted to stick with Kim, but Kim didn't care. Kim went to the master bedroom, and, well, made some illegal money. That's why she never told that part. Up till then, everything was legal.
    "wild" is an understatement. Nutty is more accurate. Roberts' statement is consistent with what the Lax players have said, for the most part (she did add some new, false statements to help her out, shame on her rasicm). She went in by herself, hence no separation at the maser bedroom door, hence no rape.
    OK, question. Kim, the AV, and Bissey all have both women going back inside the house.
    Not at the same time. Bissey in his affidavit only has the accuser going back in. Kim goes back in to "find" her, but I believe that part is a lie.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#130)
    by wumhenry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:22:36 PM EST
    weezie wrote:
    Whatever appeared in those photos may have been birth marks or pits in the skin that casted dark shadows or skin pigmentation differences seen in many African Americans
    or digital-photography artifacts, maybe?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#131)
    by barry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:26:02 PM EST
    Where does Bissey himself say 12:30, or any time? Source?
    He says 12:30, and that is from his sworn affidavit. To read it in its entirety, go to www.kirkosborn.com and click on lacrosse case. It's in the "motion for recusal" pdf file. Reade's whole alibi is there including the verizon phone log.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#132)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:27:31 PM EST
    Weezie - Posted by Sundance June 21, 2006 09:20 PM Is there a difference? Take your pick. I didn't mean for this to sound so snotty. Yes, I went to Fuqua. I only had limited interaction with the undergrads, though my 2nd year I was the KA RA.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#133)
    by weezie on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:31:24 PM EST
    Of course there's a difference! Dookies are from the south and Dukies are yankees. Did you see that Mr. Fuqua recently passed away? Thanks for your service as a KA RA. That must have been "educational."

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#134)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:37:29 PM EST
    No thanks necessary. I was coming from Tenn., but lived mostly in DE. Since both below the Mason-Dixon, I guess Dookie. The KA's were a very good bunch of guys. Could not have asked for an easier assignment.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#135)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:44:47 PM EST
    I apologize in advance for the length of this post, but I am sure I've never seen anyone cite Bissey's statement to the police. These time and quotes are from a website that uses the AV's name, so I simply copied only the Bissey portions of the time line. I was going to shorten his descriptions, but left them in because the detail this guy gave was amazing. Apologize, too, if y'all have already read all of this.
    I returned to my residence at approximately 11:30 p.m. on Monday. After getting a bottle of beer from my kitchen, I proceeded to my porch to smoke a cigarette. It was at this point that I noticed that the party from earlier in the day was still in effect next door at 610 Buchanan. I noted that some men were still lingering in the back yard of 610.
    At approximately 1150 p.m., I saw from my porch that a car had been stopped directly in front of 610, and noted that two young women, both appearing to be African-American, were walking from the direction of the car and proceeded to the back-yard entrance of 610. One of the two was dressed in an extremely short tan skirt and was wearing high heels. Her hair was pinned up above her ears. The other woman was more conservatively dressed in pants and a sweater or blouse of some sort, and her hair was shoulder-length and curly. The two women briefly spoke with one of the men who was in the back yard. I remember hearing that he lived "at the other house," which in retrospect I assume to be the house on Urban Ave. that also was rented to Duke lacrosse team members. This man then left in the direction of Watts St., apparently to the residence to which he had just referred. Another young man spoke briefly with the two women just outside the back door of 610, and then proceeded indoors. At this point no one was outside of 610 besides the two young women.
    about 11:55 p.m: A very brief conversation between the two women ensued, which I observed by switching to another chair on my porch. The more conservatively dressed woman noticed me at least once, when we made eye contact. She was speaking to the more proactively-dressed woman in a tone that I deduced through body language to be a sort of coaching, as if she was preparing her for something that she herself was comfortable with, but needed to talk the woman with the short skirt though it. I did not overhear any specific words at that time. Twice that I noticed during this conversation, a man or two different men opened the back door of 610 and spoke to the women, and the more conservatively dressed woman responded both times something to the effect that they would "be right there," or "just give us a minute."
    I saw the women enter 610 together. After a moment, I remember quite specifically that it was Midnight. The reason I know it was Midnight is because I looked at my cell phone and noted the time. At approximately 12:05 a.m. on Tuesday, I re-entered my house and took a shower.
    sometime after 12:20 a.m.: As I was getting re-dressed in my bedroom, which is on the opposite side of the building from 610, I heard loud voices from outside. I had left my front door open, and the voices were carrying from in front of my residence, as well as open windows along the alley between 608 and 610. At this point, anywhere from 12:20 a.m. to 12:30 a.m., I observed 20 to 30 young men in the alley between my residence and 610 Buchanan, and on the sidewalk in front of my building. From the front living room of my house, I heard these men yelling amongst themselves about money. Specifically, I heard one man call sarcastically at one of his peers that it was "only $100 bucks" that he had apparently spent. It is not clear to me exactly when I noticed that one of the men was leaning into the driver's side window of the car that was parked directly in front of 610, but it appeared that he was having a conversation with whomever was in the vehicle at the time.
    about 12:30 a.m.: I noted that the skimpily dressed woman had exited the car, saying something to the effect that she would go back into 610 to retrieve her shoe. She seemed agitated, but not hysterical. I left the front door open so that I could hear if the situation flared up again. I would estimate that the young woman left the car at around 12:30am.
    At this point, I believe that I was in my bedroom checking email and reading the news. At some point, I heard a renewed commotion outside. I estimate that another 15-20 minutes had elapsed, making the time approximately 1 :00 a.m. As I opened the screen door to my residence and stepped onto my porch, the car that I had seen parked in fiont of 610 was driving north on Buchanan towards Markham, and young men were beginning to disperse from the house. Most of the men were walking towards Duke's East Campus, but some proceed to the west towards Watts St. Before the car that was parked in front of 610 sped off, I distinctly heard one young man's voice who was walking towards East Campus. He yelled at the car that was driving off, 'Hey *****, thank your grandpa for my nice cotton shirt."


    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#136)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 08:46:23 PM EST
    Damn, Barry, you did what I was trying to do in 1/100th of the space. I couldn't get the Kirk Osborn site to work for me.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#137)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:02:33 PM EST
    Thank's Sharon I had only seen bits and pieces before. This is the devastating part of Bissey's statement:
    I noted that the skimpily dressed woman had exited the car, saying something to the effect that she would go back into 610 to retrieve her shoe. She seemed agitated, but not hysterical. I left the front door open so that I could hear if the situation flared up again. I would estimate that the young woman left the car at around 12:30am
    Even if you believe Robert's bogus "addition" that Precious reentered the house "to make more money" sometime before 12:30 am, Bissey has Precious going back to look for her shoe at 12:30 and she was "aggitated but not hysterical." I say she never got in the house when she went back to get her shoe because she had no shoe and she was passed out on the back porch minutes later. This case just gets crazier and crazier.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#138)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:03:59 PM EST
    Boy, I would really like to see a Nifongollum timeline that can squeeze RS into a gang rape in there. Bissey seems unimpeachable on the midnight entrance. The phone call log and taxi log seem unimpeachable. This seems to match the camera phone times, too.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#140)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:05:16 PM EST
    Bissey's statement sync's up PERFECTLY with the time stamped photo at 12:30 am of the FA smiling on the back porch looking through her bag.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#141)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:08:20 PM EST
    Will Nifong step up, be a man, admit he was wrong and accept the consequences?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#142)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:13:41 PM EST
    A rape could not have happened before 12:30 am because, if it did, the FA would not have been trying to reenter that dirty Hell house trying to get the damn shoe AND she is not hysterical, she is smiling. A rape could not have happened after 12:30 because unimpeachable photographs show her on the porch at 12:30 am trying to get in, and then passed out on the same porch minutes later. Everyone seems to agree that she was helped to the car after she passed out. Try fitting a rape in there. Then add that to the complete absense of any physical evidence of rape, mountains of inconsistency in the dancer's statements, no corroboration whatsoever of the FA's statement and what do you get -- A BIG FAT HOAX gobbled up by the race baiters and Duke haters.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#143)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:15:23 PM EST
    Will Nifong step up, be a man, admit he was wrong and accept the consequences?
    Never.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#144)
    by wumhenry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:15:46 PM EST
    Will Nifong step up, be a man, admit he was wrong and accept the consequences?
    I'll be surprised if he does. "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." -R.W.Emerson

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#145)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:18:06 PM EST
    I really don't understand how this case has gotten this far. All this information was available to the police before any indictments were handed down. What did Nifong tell that GJ in the 5 minutes that they considered the case?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#146)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:18:32 PM EST
    Boy would I hate to have Bissey as my next door neighbor, unless I needed an absolutely impartial witness for my defense. What was the date of his statement? That young man certainly included an incredible amount of detail. Just amazing that Nifungus does not see what a mess of a case he is persecuting.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#147)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:19:01 PM EST
    Wumhenry - maybe he said "Hey, Kimmy, thank your grandpa...". Or maye, "Hey, Nikki....".

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#148)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:19:42 PM EST
    So I don't know if it was a mistake by the THs or those here who wanted to discredit Bissey as an outside witness, but I seem to recall some kind of brouhaha over him (allegedly) saying that the two women got out of a car together, implying that they drove together to the house. This cast all kinds of doubts on the later (Seligman-exonerating) timeline, and on the veracity of his memory at all. Interesting from his official statement (my bolds):
    I saw from my porch that a car had been stopped directly in front of 610, and noted that two young women, both appearing to be African-American, were walking from the direction of the car and proceeded to the back-yard entrance of 610.


    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#149)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:19:51 PM EST
    I know this won't be popular, but do any of you people think that IMHO or PB or Durga might be...how can I say this? Sock Puppets? Really, do you realize how much you have increased TL's site meter? Hey, me too.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#150)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:21:32 PM EST
    Excellent quote, wumhenry. And Newport, I think it's not so much "What did Nifong tell that GJ in the 5 minutes that they considered the case?" it's what didn't he tell them?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#151)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:22:27 PM EST
    PatsyMac, You posted earlier that NC Crim. Pro. does not provide for hearing motions that challenge the search warrants, Id's etc. before the trial? How is this possible? How could these motions be decided after a trial? What sense could that possibly make if the outcome of the motion would be to eliminate the need for a trial? I would be very interested to hear your response. I don't doubt what you say, I just find it amazing, like everything else we are learning about the justice system of North Carolina.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#152)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:25:04 PM EST
    Exactly, thinkandtype, I saw the same thing. Very carefully worded.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#153)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:25:28 PM EST
    Bissey's statement also dispels the earlier speculation that the players went scrambling, tails tucked, to get away from the "scene of the crime" before the cops came. Sounds like they were bored and just sauntered home.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#154)
    by barry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:25:36 PM EST
    blockquote>Even if you believe Robert's bogus "addition" that Precious reentered the house "to make more money" sometime before 12:30 am Precious rentering the house is accurate. It's supported by the players. According to one of their defense attorneys, the AV returned to the house at about 12:20 to retrieve her purse which she did (see photograph at 12:30), exited the house but then realized she forgot her shoe, and that's when the players in the house decided to lock her out. She later fell or passed out on the steps which is documented in photgraphs. So she DID go back in. And this occured after Reade was gone.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#155)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:26:17 PM EST
    Corigmom, I've said all along that imho is a sock puppet.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#156)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:27:24 PM EST
    I heard the same thing Sundance. Amazing how all this has been slanted away from the real truth here.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#157)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:28:03 PM EST
    Newport said -
    Thanks guys, I needed some laughs after getting smacked around so much today.
    ??? Alright - Newport said-
    You are one sick and bitter person PB and you have no idea what you are talking about.
    Would everyone please stop responding to imho. She is so hateful against those boys that it is no longer even the slightest bit amusing what she is saying. IMHO has revealed herself to be a racist (viciously anti- white)and a man hater with her recent idiocy. Conversing with her only encourages more of her lunatic fringe behavior.
    Posted by Newport June 21, 2006 09:53 AM From her NoCal perch, she has made it her sole mission in life to disparage the reputation of these boys and Duke university. It needs to stop.
    Posted by Newport June 21, 2006 09:55 AM People like imho are every bit as racist as the Aryan Nation and other such groups, they just don't see it that way.
    Posted by Newport June 21, 2006 09:58 AM Right on Barry, yesterday it was the @#$%# bathroom "error" and today it's back to playing the race card. That's what people like imho do when the facts don't turn out as they hoped they would.
    Posted by Newport June 21, 2006 10:01 AM Hate crime, LOL!!! the only one who should be prosecuted for that is imho, but I doubt the prosecutor for San Fran or Marin County would be up for it. Just guessing there, of course.
    Sorry Sharon, but imho doesn't like men remember, and she especially doesn't like white men who graduated from Duke and played sports there.
    Yeah, the way they called you racist, said you hated the other sex, didn't substantiate it, then threw a temper tantrum when people kept responding to somebody who disagreed with you. Poor you; here's a cross. By the way, have you finished gathering what proved to you imho hates whites, men, and is as bad as the Aryans? Or does that count as criticism, which you obviously can't take no matter what your own behavior is? noname said -
    What does being "accountable" for their behavior mean to you in this context?
    Basically what I've said. Man-up to it, admit it happened. Save their buddies who weren't a part of it some face. Given what was said I do know they aren't the "best bunch of guy" like Evans (I believe) has said, but at least do this for each other and at least admit to what corroborating evidence - and even their own lawyer - shows. Plus, if anything, it'll make them more believable and sympathetic. Which, to some, they don't even need at this point.
    2. The assumption that you all are radical feminists was pretty funny. In his defense, though, I think Newport was using "radical" to indicate degree, as opposed to using it as a particular feminist philosophy distinct in many ways from main stream feminism. I could be wrong about this, of course.
    Nah, I think it is very likely that Newport is completely ignorant on the subject and threw out words that sounded dramatic enough in his hysteria.
    Shouldn't the feminists be angry at the damage Precious has done to real rape victims? The old saw was that false rape allegations are very rare. Yet in the highest profile rape case in years the accuser has turned out be a liar.
    In proportion to real rape cases, yes (in some places they were lower than false claims of car theft). But something being "high profile" ending up being false (if in fact it does) does not having any bearing on numbers. As it stands, we've had high profile rape/murder of Imette St. Guillen (where there were numerous articles blaming her for it, even though she did do the "responsible thing"), the OC Rape Case (which, even with video, they almost got off), the St. John lacrosse rape case (they basically got off anyway). But at the end of the day, as the above cases help demonstrate as well as many comments here, whether Precious is a liar or not has no bearing on what people will sling at rape-victims/alleged rape victims. In theory, I think it might. But it just keeps being reiforced that our culture is not mature enough to move foward no matter the circumstances.
    It's not worth it and they (the gang of three) are not worthy) of your [Bob In Pacifica's!] eloquent arguments
    Certainly not worthy of what is essentially -
    The AV had sex with 9 men, a plant, and a dog. Do you not agree she has had sex with 9 men? You can't ignore the evidence. She has several mental disorders, I know this. Both of this. All of this. There is no evidence to contradict this. Yippers. Anybody who disagrees with me is in complete denial. So this means she has several mental disorders and has had sex with many things. Imho is wrong. Imho plays games. Right? Right. Imho, you are wrong. You say things that are wrong. A lot. Speaking of me, I saw a shiny nickel the other day. Elephants are taking over the planet. Inagodadavida, baby. So, in conclusion, the AV is lying.
    barry -
    Because it's not important anymore? Whatever appeared in those photos may have been birth marks or pits in the skin that casted dark shadows or skin pigmentation differences seen in many African Americans or maybe the defense exggerated a bit. Who cares.
    Of course it doesn't matter. It is the defense after all. Don't even think about questioning why they felt the need to make something like that up if it is the case ...

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#158)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:28:10 PM EST
    Bissey's affadavit can be found here. However, what would be really interesting would be his statement to the Durham PD.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#159)
    by barry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:29:46 PM EST
    Kim's bogus addition was her claim that she went back in to find the AV but couldn't (this is not in her original handwritten statement, and I doubt it's supported by the player' testimony). She did this to help the accuser out. Shame on her racism.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#160)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:30:13 PM EST
    Sorry meant Corgimon, should have known better I have a dog.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#161)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:31:15 PM EST
    Now I'm really in for it, the race police are in the house.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#162)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:33:16 PM EST
    okay, my legal ignorance is showing. Beenaround, the DPD statement is different from the affadavit?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#163)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:35:51 PM EST
    Photios posted:
    remember ho
    w "80% of all sexual assaults" morphed into "80% of all rapes"? Oh, I remember it well. So very much that I saved it to a harddrive on my computer when I found NiFong's original statement. For awhile here, I thought I was living in the Twilight Zone as the much more amorphous category of "sexual assualts" transmogrified into "rapes". Fact is, most rapes leave DNA though it is not always useful, since many rapes and alleged rapes are in the "date rape" category. DNA should be found in every gang-rape case involving multiple orifaces, even if condoms were used. Unless the perps are wearing biohazard suits. Since no one alleges the "Duke Boys" were wearing such attire on the night in question the gang rape never happened. Which is why all this time line stuff is totally irrelevent, and Seligeman's alibi is but icing on the cake, not a necessity for his defense.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#164)
    by barry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:37:12 PM EST
    I do think Bissey is off on the time just a little, particulary the 12:30 comment. It was probably a little earlier, like 5 or 10 minutes. Slight differences are expected when eyewitnesses give timelines.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#165)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:38:06 PM EST
    Sundance asks:
    okay, my legal ignorance is showing. Beenaround, the DPD statement is different from the affadavit?
    I would imagine so, since all the statements made to the DPD that we have seen so far have been handwritten, and not notarized. This statement was typewritten and notarized (I recall), so I think it was a deposition taken by Seligman's lawyer. I imagine that it is substantially similar to his statement to the DPD, but it would be very interesting to see his original statement (if they got one from him).

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#166)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:41:16 PM EST
    Sundance, Bissey must have gone to the defense attorneys' offices and gave the detailed statement which is what has been posted here. His statement was attached to Reade's motion that included a write-up of his alibi. Bissey almost certainly interviewed immediately after the alleged crime by DPD. That would be a separate statement. It would have been in the discovery turned over to the defense by the Nifong. So we will have two Bissey statements. One to the police and one to the defense attorneys.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#167)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:41:24 PM EST
    cib - you are likely correct, but in the event this ever comes before a jury, an unsophisticated jurist might not understand all the DNA testimony or might have bought into Nifongollum's condom (not on the head, not as a moustache) theory. But any dolt can understand that if you are not there, you could not have done it.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#168)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:45:07 PM EST
    Barry, so are you saying that Bissey saw Precious when she was reentering the house to get her makeup bag at 12:20 as you posted. This does not add up because Bissey said he heard Precious say she was going to get her shoe right before he observed her going back to the house at 12:30. I don't think you are right about this.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#169)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:48:10 PM EST
    cib, agreed, but the timeline stuff is unimpeachable as well, and a lay person will understand it better.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#170)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:49:16 PM EST
    Sorry Sundance did not see your prior post re Cib's post.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#171)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:51:32 PM EST
    Sundance an unsophisticated jurist would be someone like Nifong when they promote him to judge after this case. I think you meant "unsophisticated juror."

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#172)
    by wumhenry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:51:45 PM EST
    Durga_ wrote:
    Man-up to it, admit it happened. Save their buddies who weren't a part of it some face. Given what was said I do know they aren't the "best bunch of guy" ... but at least ... admit to what corroborating evidence - and even their own lawyer -shows.
    ??! Admit what happened?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#173)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:52:29 PM EST
    Much more eloquently said, Newport. Thank you. And thank you Newport and Beenaround for the continued legal education.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#174)
    by barry on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 09:57:56 PM EST
    "Barry, so are you saying that Bissey saw Precious when she was reentering the house to get her makeup bag at 12:20 as you posted. This does not add up because Bissey said he heard Precious say she was going to get her shoe right before he observed her going back to the house at 12:30. I don't think you are right about this." He's off a little on the time or maybe the players are. The times don't have to be *exact*. This is eyewitness testimony after all. Whatever the case, the reentrance definitely had to be after 12:14 at the least. She went back for her purse and her missing shoe. Bissey heard the shoe part while Kim and the players noted the purse part. That's my theory.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#175)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 10:06:44 PM EST
    Durga you are a racist. You just can't accept it because of your "belief system." Racism can manifest itself against any enumerated race, white or caucasian being one. And, you hate white men and have shown that on this board.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#176)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 10:14:23 PM EST
    I learned that a rape exam takes on the average 4-6 hours. I believe the AV was there at Duke for 5 hours. It's definitely no picnic; it was described in class as a "gynecological exam gone mad," and it was the opinion of our presenter that it is very unlikely a woman would subject herself to it unless she had actually been raped and thought she'd want to press charges. She'd have to be extremely motivated to endure it otherwise.
    There's someone who claims to be a SANE nurse on the CourtTV boards and she says that they get a lot of false accusers who go through the exam.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#177)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 10:21:04 PM EST
    banco55, SANE nurse on Abram's yesterday said the same thing.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#178)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 10:28:35 PM EST
    Someone asked earlier if anyone knows the time of the big hearing tomorrow. I don't remember seeing a response. Does anyone know? What channel?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#179)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 10:31:42 PM EST
    banco55 says:
    There's someone who claims to be a SANE nurse on the CourtTV boards and she says that they get a lot of false accusers who go through the exam.
    Well, did she give any indication of how this was determined? That is, how it was determined that some were false accusers and what the percentage was?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#180)
    by Lora on Wed Jun 21, 2006 at 11:24:50 PM EST
    Bissey, from Rita Cosby:
    JASON BISSEY, LIVES NEXT DOOR TO ALLEGED CRIME SCENE: I noticed a car drive up and two young women get out, met with the gentleman and then walked back to the back of the house. Two young women, one of them dressed in a short skirt and high heels, and the other woman was dressed a little more conservatively spoke with the gentleman outside of this door here briefly, and then at this point, all of the young men were inside. They spoke amongst themselves for about five minutes or so and then entered the house.
    And at that point, I went inside to take a shower. And when I came out, this entire alley was full of men kind of yelling, and I overheard a lot of talk about getting money back and the money they'd spent or whatever. And the young women were back in the car in front, and one of the young men was leaning into the driver's side door, speaking with her. But at that point, the situation seemed to calm down a little bit, and they were able, I guess, to convince one of the girls to go back inside.
    And that's at the point where I overheard her talking about going back and getting her shoe.
    So the young ladies went back into the house, and at that point, nobody was out in the alley. The situation seemed pretty calm. And I was back in the house, just kind of hanging out, checking my e-mail and stuff, and I overheard the situation starting to boil up again outside.
    And at that point, the young women were coming back out of the house, getting into the car and driving away. And there were a lot of young men running this way, towards Duke's east campus. And that's the point, when the girls were driving off, that I overheard the racial slur. One of the young men yelled, Hey, "expletive," thank your grandpa for my nice cotton shirt.
    And within two minutes, everything was totally dispersed, everybody was gone, and the police showed up shortly thereafter.
    Well, Bissey seems to be...inconsistent, that's the word I'm looking for. Two women get out of a car in this account. Two women go back inside the house in this account. Men run away from the house in this account. There are no times at all given here. The only time he mentions being sure of in the affidavit is "Midnight." However all we know about that time is that some unspecified time after the dancers and partyers had gone inside the house he looked at his cell phone and noted the time was "Midnight." The other times are all approximate and there is no back up for them in the affidavit. We know his 1:00 AM time is off, by at least 15 minutes. His other times could be way off too. TThese times are hardly unimpeachable.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#181)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 01:00:20 AM EST
    Wumhenry, you are correct about the word Bissey heard the player utter as the car drove away. It was b*tch. I looked at the affidavit on Osborn's website. It is not blocked out there.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#182)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 01:20:18 AM EST
    Banco wrote
    I'd note that most common law countries don't have grand juries in the american sense instead most of them have a hearing where a judge decides if there is enough evidence to indict. In many ways I think that would be a better system. Shouldn't the feminists be angry at the damage Precious has done to real rape victims? The old saw was that false rape allegations are very rare. Yet in the highest profile rape case in years the accuser has turned out be a liar.
    That's how we do it here in California. DA charges on information and then the defendant has a right to a preliminary hearing to determine whether there is probable cause to bind the defendant over to trial. If this mechanism existed in Durham this case would have been over by now. But, under the Durham GJ system there is no way out for defendants to present proof that probable cause does not exist -- so they go to trial on flimsy or fabricated charges. For the Durham system to work two things must be present 1) there must be an honest presentation of evidence by the DA to the GJ and 2) the accused must be afforded the opportunity to present excuptatory information to the GJ during its deliberations. Of course, here neither of those fairness requirements were met and we know what the result was: 2-5 minutes of "evidence" presentation by Himan and a vote to indict. That is why California abolished this unfair system. BTW, most defendants end up waiving the prelim hearing. It really only comes into play when defendants have strong evidence of their innocence to present to avoid the charging document.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#183)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 01:22:38 AM EST
    Khartoum, You wrote:
    Do you have a link where Nifong says he hasn't violated Rule 3.6 on prejudicial public statenments; Rule 3.8 requiring prosecutors to consider all evidence before indictment, even if it doesn't help the accuser; or NC Actual Innocence Commission's Guidelines requiring seven fillers for every suspect? I hadn't realized he made a statement that he hadn't violated these three provisions.
    I wasn't referring to all three when I wrote of the "exception" to the guidelines. I was writing of the first. His letter to Newsweek does that. As far as the fillers, a "guideline" doesn't "require" anything of a prosecutor. It recommends. We don't understand what the context was of the interview that is being compained about. There is a rumor that there had been earlier lineups, but we don't know the results of the eralier lineups. Did the earlier lineups include fillers? As far as whether Nifong has an obligation to meet with the suspects attorneys in a backroom the day befor he plans to bring indictments, I don't think he does. He's not an investigator, and he's not supposed to be. Those lawyers can bring their evidence down to the police station any day of the week and they won't be rebuked. You are mistaking gamesmanship with ethics. Is it your conception that the case should be thrown out if during one of the witness IDs fillers were not used? That's a seriously negligent view of the concept of "justice." Justice isn't just for people who are accused of crimes. As I've said before, you can reduce the number of false positives (innocent people convicted of crimes) to zero overnight simply by declaring crime legal. But that's not a particularly useful idea.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#184)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 01:45:00 AM EST
    should have added to the last, that some defendants chose the prelim hearing to force the prosecutions' hand as well.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#185)
    by Alan on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 01:53:18 AM EST
    khartoum posted:
    Do you have a link where Nifong says he hasn't violated Rule 3.6 on prejudicial public statenments; Rule 3.8 requiring prosecutors to consider all evidence before indictment, even if it doesn't help the accuser; or NC Actual Innocence Commission's Guidelines requiring seven fillers for every suspect? I hadn't realized he made a statement that he hadn't violated these three provisions.
    PB posted:
    I wasn't referring to all three when I wrote of the "exception" to the guidelines. I was writing of the first. His letter to Newsweek does that. As far as the fillers, a "guideline" doesn't "require" anything of a prosecutor. It recommends. We don't understand what the context was of the interview that is being compained about. There is a rumor that there had been earlier lineups, but we don't know the results of the eralier lineups. Did the earlier lineups include fillers?
    If Rule 3.8 requires that all evidence be considered, what Rule (I am asking for a link here, not the customary attempt to rewrite a thousand years of the common law) authorises the prosecutor to not consider some evidence? evidence?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#186)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:09:59 AM EST
    inmyhumbleopinion asked:
    How about a "college girl" with an active social life? What if she went out with seven different men in the week before she claimed she was raped. If she says none of the dates involved v@ginal sex is it absolutely reasonable for the jurors to consider the evidence of her "dates" as a possible alternative explanation for her injuries?
    How about a married woman that slept with her husband every night of the week preceeding her alleged rape? If she says they did not engage in v@ginal sex is it absolutely reasonable for the jurors to consider the evidence of her sleeping in the same bed as her husband as a possible alternative explanation for her injuries?
    Is it that the "stripper" is presumably getting paid for these dates that it is reasonable to consider her v@gina could be injured during one of them?
    This is a problem of probabilistic inference. These can be tricky especially for a lay person. I suspect many jurors have difficulty evaluating such evidence sensibly. In order to decide what weight to give a finding of v*g*n*l swelling (henceforth VS) a juror needs to estimate the probability that VS will be found given that no rape occurred. If no rape occurred then the AV is lying (or deluded) about the rape which means any statements by her about not having v*g*n*l sex (henceforth Vsex) in the preceding week are quite possibly lies also and should not be given great weight. So in all the cases proposed above it is quite reasonable for juror to consider the other evidence suggesting the AV may have had Vsex despite her denials. The probability Vsex will produce VS is also important. I believe it is reasonable for a juror to assume that muliple instances of Vsex increases the probability of VS and that commercial Vsex is more likely to produce VS than Vsex with a husband. As a concrete example of the reasoning involved suppose you estimate prior to examining the AV that there is a 50% chance a rape occurred. Suppose further you estimate that there was a 50% chance VS was already present before the alleged rape occurred (independent of whether or not the rape occurred) and a 80% chance that a rape will produce VS if not already present. Then VS will be found 70% of time (90%,50% for the rape, no-rape cases which we are assuming are equally likely). If VS is found then you should raise your estimate that rape occurred to 64% (9/14). Conversely if VS is not found you should lower your estimate that a rape occurred to 17% (1/6). Since it is the prosecution's obligation to investigate the case and to prove guilt as a juror I would expect them to present the evidence required to do the above sort of calculation sensibly. So in the above scenarios I would expect testimony from dates, husband or clients about whether they had VS with the AV in the prior week. I would also expect medical testimony about other possible causes of VS such as infection. If the prosecution did not offer such evidence I would discount the finding of VS.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#187)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:36:12 AM EST
    Alan, You wrote:
    If Rule 3.8 requires that all evidence be considered, what Rule (I am asking for a link here, not the customary attempt to rewrite a thousand years of the common law) authorises the prosecutor to not consider some evidence? evidence?
    Prosecutors are wise to have procedural rules in place for how they go about looking at evidence. There is an appearance of impropriety when Prosecutors meet privately with defense attorneys in the days before a grand jury is to meet to go over evidence or arguments that can as asily be presented to the police or even the media. In the abstract, these procedural rules could be in conflict with Rule 3.8, but in the real world, that's an empirical matter for the Judiciary to ponder. In this particular case, the procedural rule wasn't tested at all, since the lawyers never attempted to get their evidence to Nifong through proper channels. You wrote:
    I am asking for a link here, not the customary attempt to rewrite a thousand years of the common law
    I can't think of one time that I have attempted to rewrite a thousand years of common law. Why such a sourpuss?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#188)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:42:26 AM EST
    Here's an excerpt from the self described SANE nurse over at courttv: "I just wanted to add my personal experiences to this conversation. I am a SANE/ER nurse. With that said, I want to relate to you some statistics I heard on Nancy Grace (yes my mom had the program on). A rape counselor stated the incidence of false reporting is only 2%. In my PERSONAL experience that is untrue. False reporting is a MUCH larger percentage. Many of the "rape" claims never make it past the first investigating officer. The victim suddenly does not want to do anything or the victim suddenly walks out of the hospital without being seen." http://boards.courttv.com/showthread.php?s=0de7080f3536b3644e724fb2c60a7f07&threadid=267725&perpage=40&pagenumber=1 Also has this gem: "The FBI's statistic for "unfounded" rape accusations is 9%, but this definition only includes cases where the accuser recants or the evidence contradicts her story." http://www.glennsacks.com/research_shows_false.htm So all that stuff about false rape allegations being vanishingly rare is PC BS.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#189)
    by Alan on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:01:07 AM EST
    I can't think of one time that I have attempted to rewrite a thousand years of common law. Why such a sourpuss?
    Your theory that every accuser has the right force the defendants to face trial is a rewrite. The attacks on the right to silence and the right to counsel are rewrites. When you keep inventing law in your answers, you have to expect that even the saintliest among your interlocutors will occasionally get a tad frustrated. I note that despite the customary tergiversation you have not linked to the alleged rule which authorises the prosecutor to disregard some of the evidence. We should move along. Show us, in addition to the rule that exempts the prosecutor from considering all evidence, where Rule 3.6 or any other rule requires the prosecutor's silence once indictments issue? And why did this apply after the third indictment, but not the first two indictments?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#190)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:26:49 AM EST
    LOL Alan. Show us the rule that says Nifong can't reply in writing to any motions either. How is it possible that with all the questions surrounding his handling of the case and the state of the evidence he has not seen fit to express himself in writing to the court in response to proper motions. That I find to be remarkable.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#191)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:29:34 AM EST
    ThinkandType, You wrote:
    So I don't know if it was a mistake by the THs or those here who wanted to discredit Bissey as an outside witness, but I seem to recall some kind of brouhaha over him (allegedly) saying that the two women got out of a car together, implying that they drove together to the house.
    Bissey said on Rita Cosby:
    I noticed a car drive up and two young women get out, met with the gentleman and then walked back to the back of the house.
    This is on tape, so I don't know that we need to be too careful with the word "allegedly." Bissey puts the two women going in at about midnight. The defense, via their doctored photographs at least, have the dance starting at midnight. So I estimate that the time it took for Kim to change into her costume and sip her drink, and for the accuser to spill her drink and drink Kim's drink at about 4.5 seconds. No wonder the accuser had a strong reaction to the drink.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#192)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:29:42 AM EST
    PB wrote,
    Prosecutors are wise to have procedural rules in place for how they go about looking at evidence. There is an appearance of impropriety when Prosecutors meet privately with defense attorneys in the days before a grand jury is to meet to go over evidence or arguments that can as asily be presented to the police or even the media. In the abstract, these procedural rules could be in conflict with Rule 3.8, but in the real world, that's an empirical matter for the Judiciary to ponder. In this particular case, the procedural rule wasn't tested at all, since the lawyers never attempted to get their evidence to Nifong through proper channels.
    Complete and utter nonsense, nothing more and nothing less.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#193)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:31:14 AM EST
    PB with more of the same hateful, ridiculous comments:
    Bissey puts the two women going in at about midnight. The defense, via their doctored photographs at least, have the dance starting at midnight


    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#194)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:37:54 AM EST
    PB, the defense doctored them photographs damn good, now didn't they.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#195)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:09:28 AM EST
    Alan, You wrote:
    Your theory that every accuser has the right force the defendants to face trial is a rewrite. The attacks on the right to silence and the right to counsel are rewrites.
    I don't argue that false accusers have a right to force defendants to court. But you don't actually become a false accuser except by Judicial decision. Media fiat doesn't cut it. I've never attacked the right to remain silent, nor the right to retain counsel. Even if I had, those rights don't go back a thousand years. What makes you a trustworthy steward of the truth, when you can't even avoid making false statements about someone who disagrees with you on a blog?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#196)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:16:47 AM EST
    Newport wrote:
    PB, the defense doctored them photographs damn good, now didn't they.
    Oh, I don't think they were doctored by the defense. I think they were doctored at the tv station. I do think the defense suggested some of the adjustments. Certain people were cropped out of the frame, for example. You wonder whether Seligman might have had a beer in his hand, but that's been cropped. I would even suggest that the timestamps, which normally would not appear in the picture area of most digital photographs, were added to the frames after the fact by what is known in the business as a "character generator." It is not known whether the numbers shown correspond to the actual timestamps set in code by the camera. I suspect that they do, but I wouldn't find it astonishing if they did not, for a variety of reasons.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#197)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:24:28 AM EST
    PB you're either trolling or you've lost your mind. I'm sure a tv station would open itself up to criminal/civil liability by doing something like that.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#198)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:28:36 AM EST
    Alan, You wrote:
    I note that despite the customary tergiversation you have not linked to the alleged rule which authorises the prosecutor to disregard some of the evidence.
    Since I haven't alleged that Nifong is authorized to disregard ANY evidence, I don't see that it should be necessary to find a rule that says he can. It's a fruitless argument, since you are well aware how simple it is for the attorneys to get the evidence to Nifong. What they wanted to do was to meet with Nifong and make arguments with him. Oh do show me the rule that requires Nifong to meet with the defense attorneys prior to filing charges against their clients. Or forever be labeled a tergiversationist if you don't.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#199)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:36:22 AM EST
    Banco writes:
    PB you're either trolling or you've lost your mind. I'm sure a tv station would open itself up to criminal/civil liability by doing something like that.
    What's worse, they left a "digital fingerprint" of their changes. If you look closely, you can see the words "Abrams report exclusive" up in the righthand corner of the frame of each photograph. I sincerely doubt whether these words appeared in the original photographs. Unless Abrams actually was at the party, which I suppose is possible. He must have some reason for playing this stuff so close to the vest.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#200)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:41:31 AM EST
    I feel it is highly unprofesional of Dan Abrams to not disclose he is the Dukie that was cropped from the photo described as the other dancer reaching forward to slap a party-goer for making a crude comment.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#201)
    by weezie on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:41:54 AM EST
    Yeah, that's right pb the tv station doctored a beer out of Reade's hand in order not to have to do any free advertising. Way to go Sherlock!

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#202)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:55:49 AM EST
    PB posted:
    Hi Bob in Pacifica, You wrote:
    It appears that everyone here admits that there is not enough evidence beyond a reasonable doubt to convict the 3 men.
    I don't.
    I had not read Bob in Pacifica's claim (for obvious reasons), but now that it has appeared in another commenter's post I have. Why would anyone expect there would be enough evidence to convict beyond a reasonable doubt before we've heard the prosecution answer the defense spin, muchless before we've hear actual evidence from either side? I see I haven't been missing much.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#203)
    by Alan on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:03:27 AM EST
    Pb tergiversated:
    Since I haven't alleged that Nifong is authorized to disregard ANY evidence, I don't see that it should be necessary to find a rule that says he can.
    You are saying then, that Nifong considered the evidence which he had refused to see? How would you see that he achieved this juridicial wonder?
    Oh do show me the rule that requires Nifong to meet with the defense attorneys prior to filing charges against their clients. Or forever be labeled a tergiversationist if you don't.
    I do not believe that such a rule exists. I have never said such a rule exists. Interesting that you believe calling for a citation is valid, but one from which you are exempt.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#204)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:06:43 AM EST
    Exclusive photos from a competing cable news network: 12:20:18 Is that Dan Abrams helping Kim drag the accuser back into the house?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#205)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:07:04 AM EST
    In between PB's conspiracy theories against the national media, we now hear that the state bar's ethics rules saying that prosecutors must avoid "pursuit of evidence merely because he or she believes it will damage the prosecutor's case or aid the accused" means that Nifong was correct in refusing to meet with defense attorneys who stated that they had evidence that would "aid the accused." We're also told that it's OK for Nifong to simply ignore state guidelines on photo IDs--when the result of this ID session is the only evidence specifically linking at least two of the accused players. And that it's OK for Nifong to call the suspects "hooligans" and compare the case to a local triple murder or cross-burning, despite a state bar guideline prohibiting prosecutorial statements that might increase public condemnation of suspects. These are viewpoints that would be very much at home in the Bush Justice Department. But I'm having a hard time understanding how they fit with someone who has lectured the board about her fervent commitment to "due process."

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#206)
    by cpinva on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:21:32 AM EST
    IMHO posted:
    Couldn't someone who the works in the private lab have done that? Why do you assume the source of the leak was the DA's office?
    what, are you linda blair, in the exorcist? your head spins so much, you must be constantly dizzy. first, you claimed that parts of the medical report (specifically, those parts supporting the state's rape allegation) have been kept under wraps. now, you seem to agree it probably would have been leaked, but quibble over who would have leaked it. are ya daft, woman? frankly, i can't believe i waste valuable time, time i'll never recover, responding to your increasingly inane posts. ok, for those of you apparently on drugs, or just off in your own little alternate reality, here's the deal:
    if a frog had wings, he wouldn't bump his ass when he hopped. if.
    attributable to some unknown wag. this frog has no wings. it's ass is getting bumped, constantly. witness the pathetic attempt by DA nifong to discredit the reporters, who've callously, and without regard for his feelings or political prospects, had the temerity to report his public comments verbatim. how dare they! sorry IMHO, having a real life, i apparently missed, and cannot locate, whatever post it was that you challenged me to respond to. it matters not, because whatever it was would have been just as ludicrous as the vast majority of your posts on this issue have been. thank goodness you weren't here when the scott peterson case was going on, another one wholly lacking any kind of actual evidence, to support the allegation. you would have concocted, out of whole cloth, an entire scenario, featuring a one-armed man helping mr. peterson commit this nefarious crime. yes, i know, i made that last part up. however, it's based pretty much on the tone and content of your posts, i merely extrapolated. the facts are, there are few, if any facts, supporting the AV's (what, is TL the last bastion of deniability?) and state's allegations. yet, you've insisted on twisting and turning and what iffing them to death. frankly, your schtick has grown dull.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#207)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:26:14 AM EST
    banco55 posted this comment from the court tv message board:
    "I just wanted to add my personal experiences to this conversation. I am a SANE/ER nurse. With that said, I want to relate to you some statistics I heard on Nancy Grace (yes my mom had the program on). A rape counselor stated the incidence of false reporting is only 2%.
    In my PERSONAL experience that is untrue. False reporting is a MUCH larger percentage. Many of the "rape" claims never make it past the first investigating officer. The victim suddenly does not want to do anything or the victim suddenly walks out of the hospital without being seen."
    A victim claiming rape declining the 4 hour S.A.N.E. exam or declining to press charges is not proof of a false alegation. The examples she gives are parents dragging in teenage daughters that come home late or drunk, spouses in custody battles, and spouses caught cheating. What she neglected to relate was in her "PERSONAL experience" how many women that claimed they were violently gang raped did she suspect to be falsely reporting rape? Or, in her "PERSONAL experience" how many women that claimed they were raped by someone they did not know, did she suspect to be falsely reporting rape? Even a date rape scenario where the alleged rapist claims there was "nosex" - in her "PERSONAL experience" how many women that claimed they were date-raped by a man that denies any sex took place, did she suspect to be falsely reporting rape? These "PERSONAL experiences" are more relevant to this case than the examples she gave on the court tv messageboard.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#208)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:35:23 AM EST
    PB wrote: The defense, via their doctored photographs at least... So PB, are you dirtying down the defense here, or do you have any proof of any photographs being doctored. Or do you presume that the photos are doctored. Or have you deduced it because the AV can't have been lying? Can you see through yourself?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#209)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:48:02 AM EST
    PB wrote: I don't argue that false accusers have a right to force defendants to court. But you don't actually become a false accuser except by Judicial decision. Media fiat doesn't cut it. But we're back to what is a false accuser? You say that false accusers have a right to force defendants to court if a court hasn't officially ruled them to be lying about the question, but not accusers who have not been officially ruled by a court to be false? You've conceded nothing. You think that anyone, with the exception of someone who has been judged to be a false accuser in a court of law, can force defendants to court? That's everyone. You're nuts if you think that's any kind of hurdle. I think the current system, where irrational, unfounded charges for which there is no evidence are not pursued, is pretty good.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#210)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:48:12 AM EST
    Reasonable posters - I appreciated the postings of the Big 3 in going through this case. Their constant alternatives and differing facts and views caused me pause to consider. However, I believe Newport had it right on the Big 3. Somehow, they have a dog in this race or are sock puppets, imo.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#211)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:56:31 AM EST
    Let's try another question, since most of the AV enablers had trouble with guilt versus innocence yesterday. On the basis of what evidence do you think that this case should proceed? What evidence is strong enough to continue bringing these indictments to trial? I hear PB making all sorts of claims about evil defense attorneys, I hear Durga still trotting out the tired story about if only the players had confessed, and then we have IMHO. What I don't hear is the definitive proof that a rape had occurred. The only thing we have is the AV's final version of events, which don't match any witness statements or physical evidence. And yet there must be something to keep these posters hanging on the hope that a crime occurred and that it's got potential to be a winner in front of a jury.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#212)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:58:57 AM EST
    cpinva posted:
    what, are you linda blair, in the exorcist? your head spins so much, you must be constantly dizzy. first, you claimed that parts of the medical report (specifically, those parts supporting the state's rape allegation) have been kept under wraps. now, you seem to agree it probably would have been leaked, but quibble over who would have leaked it.
    Your claim was that if there was any exculpatory evidence it would have been leaked by Nifong's office. You had no supporting evidence for your claim. The only example I have heard concerning a possible prosecution leak was the leak of the DNA evidence results before the defense team received a faxed copy, but there is no proof of that either - an employee of the private lab could have leaked it.
    cpinva posted:
    let's get real here, if mr. nifong had concrete, no questions about it evidence, to support the allegations, he would be bound by the rules of discovery to have disclosed that to the defense team. while it's true that the defense team might not blare that in public, it would have been leaked, by someone, to the press. and yet, nothing.
    imho posted:
    Leaked by whom? Dan Abrams?
    cpinva posted:
    it would have been leaked by someone, probably some low level employee in the DA's office, for a nice piece of change, to a tabloid. i guarantee it. if you truly think it would remain a secret, i have a bridge for sale.........
    cpinva posted:
    thank goodness you weren't here when the scott peterson case was going on, another one wholly lacking any kind of actual evidence, to support the allegation. you would have concocted, out of whole cloth, an entire scenario, featuring a one-armed man helping mr. peterson commit this nefarious crime.
    yes, i know, i made that last part up. however, it's based pretty much on the tone and content of your posts, i merely extrapolated.
    I thought Scott Peterson was guilty as Hell. Still do. cpinva posted:
    he facts are, there are few, if any facts, supporting the AV's (what, is TL the last bastion of deniability?) and state's allegations. yet, you've insisted on twisting and turning and what iffing them to death.
    Back to the first argument in this post - we haven't seen the prosecution's case. cpinva posted:
    frankly, your schtick has grown dull.
    Apparently, your real life is even duller - or you wouldn't keep reading my dull comments.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#213)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:02:19 AM EST
    A victim claiming rape declining the 4 hour S.A.N.E. exam or declining to press charges is not proof of a false alegation. The examples she gives are parents dragging in teenage daughters that come home late or drunk, spouses in custody battles, and spouses caught cheating. What she neglected to relate was in her "PERSONAL experience" how many women that claimed they were violently gang raped did she suspect to be falsely reporting rape? Or, in her "PERSONAL
    ... blah, blah, blah, blah. So IMHO, you wanna address the more relevent issue of how many gang-rapes leave no DNA evidence behind? And you can save yourself even more probalistic grief if you look up the statistics of white on black gang-rape. Of course I'll gladly do that for you if you haven't the time - I know that spinning defense statements is hard work.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#214)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:11:11 AM EST
    Re the "doctoring" of the photos, especially PB's conspiracy theories reltated thereto, here are some of my thoughts: 1. The Seligman photo is cropped because the identities of those sitting next to him, who were not indicted, were being protected. The original undoctored picture will be a full view of that shot. 2. The "Abrams report (sic) Exclusive" was added by MSNBC to ensure that whatever other media with whom they shared the photos would give proper attribution for them. 3. Any particular tv station in mind, PB, where the digital equipment was used to voodoo the photos? Also, PB, you said in part:
    There is an appearance of impropriety when Prosecutors meet privately with defense attorneys in the days before a grand jury is to meet to go over evidence or arguments that can as asily be presented to the police or even the media.
    You cannot be serious, PB. Prosecutors meet with defense attorneys all the time before arrest or indictment. To suggest that to do so would give even the appearance of impropriety, possibly, the most foolish thing you have said.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#215)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:23:09 AM EST
    cib posted:
    So IMHO, you wanna address the more relevent issue of how many gang-rapes leave no DNA evidence behind? And you can save yourself even more probalistic grief if you look up the statistics of white on black gang-rape. Of course I'll gladly do that for you if you haven't the time - I know that spinning defense statements is hard work.
    Do you have any information on those topics? I'd be happy to discuss it. My point the lack of relevance of her post. That nurse's post about all these false accuser teenage girls dragged into the ER by their parents for getting drunk and having sex with their boyfriends - I'd guess in her "PERSONAL experience" they don't show signs vaginal injury or swelling. So what? What does that nurse's post about the "PERSONAL experiences" she chose to share have to do with this case? What was the point of posting it here?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#216)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:23:21 AM EST
    What evidence is there of a gang rape? AV enablers?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#217)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:28:46 AM EST
    Sharon, I particularly liked the one about DAs and defense attorneys not talking to each other because it would give an appearance of impropriety.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#218)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:32:26 AM EST
    Sharon wrote,
    You cannot be serious, PB. Prosecutors meet with defense attorneys all the time before arrest or indictment. To suggest that to do so would give even the appearance of impropriety, possibly, the most foolish thing you have said.
    . and that is saying something.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#219)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:33:49 AM EST
    My point the lack of relevance of her post. That nurse's post about all these false accuser teenage girls dragged into the ER by their parents for getting drunk and having sex with their boyfriends - I'd guess in her "PERSONAL experience" they don't show signs vaginal injury or swelling. So what? What does that nurse's post about the "PERSONAL experiences" she chose to share have to do with this case? What was the point of posting it here?
    It was in reference to someone saying that they can't imagine many women would go through with the SANE exam unless they were really raped. Clearly a certain woman in Durham is willing to go through the exam if it keeps her out of the psych ward.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#220)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:35:32 AM EST
    cib, my understanding that the "statistics" of white on black gang rape is zero. this would be the first one ever as far as I know The hearing is at 3:00 pm.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#221)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:41:39 AM EST
    cpinva posted:
    sorry IMHO, having a real life, i apparently missed, and cannot locate, whatever post it was that you challenged me to respond to. it matters not, because whatever it was would have been just as ludicrous as the vast majority of your posts on this issue have been.
    It was the opposite of a challenge. I said I would understand if you chose not to respond to me out of respect for Newport's desperate plea: Posted by inmyhumbleopinion June 21, 2006 10:30 AM
    cpinva,
    If you do not reply to this I will not take it to mean that you could not refute any of my points. I will consider no reply may be your response to Newport's plea to Talk Left's commenters:
    Newport posted:
    Would everyone please stop responding to imho
    If you are bored with my dull posts, now would be a good time to not only stop responding to me, but to do it as a sign of support for Newport, because, frankly, he could use some support. It seems his plea, in large, is being ignored.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#222)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:50:20 AM EST
    Thanks for the info Newport. Let me make a point about the inconsistencies in Bissey's and the defense attorneys "inconsistent statements." The reason why I only quoted Bissey's affadavit is that is the only time he was giving testimony, the only time he was under oath and upon penalties of perjury making a statement for use in a judicial proceeding. Far, far more weight needs to be given to sworn testimony. In theory, at least, that is the time when a witness is giving his or her absolute best recollection of the matter, not media interviews. Was Bissey "lying" in the Crosby, or NYTimes, or any other interview? No, but he was not under the pressure of giving sworn testimony. Similarly, what a defense attorney says, in interviews with the media, should be given far less weight than what said attorney says either in a motion or in open court. An attorney's statements in the latter two instances are, like Bissey's affidavit, given "under penalties of perjury, to the best of his/her knowledge or belief." And, unlike Bissey, defense attorneys will not be giving testimony in a trial.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#223)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:52:00 AM EST
    See Newport? imho just can't stop referring to you. I think she has a crush on you.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#224)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:56:26 AM EST
    thanks for the Bissey DPD statement v. affadavit clarification, Sharon. I was wondering about that. Newport and IMHO sitting in a tree...? Can't see that happening.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#225)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:58:14 AM EST
    SharonInJax posted:
    See Newport? imho just can't stop referring to you. I think she has a crush on you.
    It is not unrequited. Posted by Newport June 19, 2006 03:09 AM

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#226)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:59:15 AM EST
    Durga - In your June 21, 2006 10:28 PM you attribute some things to me I never said. The first two quotes after "noname said -" are mine. The rest are not. I just wanted to point that out.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#227)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 07:02:36 AM EST
    Newport posted:
    cib, my understanding that the "statistics" of white on black gang rape is zero. this would be the first one ever as far as I know
    If this was a planned drug facilitated rape, didn't a defense attorney say they requested white dancers?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#228)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 07:24:18 AM EST
    Duke Mom Wants Son 'To Have Life Back'
    In an exclusive interview with CBS News correspondent Trish Regan, Seligmann's mother, Kathy, said that despite her family's nightmare, she does not blame the accuser.
    "I don't hate her...I think she panicked and made up this story. I pray that she didn't mean for this to happen," Kathy told Regan.


    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#229)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 07:32:49 AM EST
    For all the Nancy Grace fans: CNN's Nancy Grace Tells The Worst Joke Ever

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#230)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 08:19:47 AM EST
    Sharon posted:
    Let me make a point about the inconsistencies in Bissey's and the defense attorneys "inconsistent statements." The reason why I only quoted Bissey's affadavit is that is the only time he was giving testimony, the only time he was under oath and upon penalties of perjury making a statement for use in a judicial proceeding. Far, far more weight needs to be given to sworn testimony. In theory, at least, that is the time when a witness is giving his or her absolute best recollection of the matter, not media interviews. Was Bissey "lying" in the Crosby, or NYTimes, or any other interview? No, but he was not under the pressure of giving sworn testimony. Similarly, what a defense attorney says, in interviews with the media, should be given far less weight than what said attorney says either in a motion or in open court. An attorney's statements in the latter two instances are, like Bissey's affidavit, given "under penalties of perjury, to the best of his/her knowledge or belief." And, unlike Bissey, defense attorneys will not be giving testimony in a trial.
    I think his inconsistency has to do with what he was hearing locally or on the internet. After hearing the story about both women entering together and then getting separated (not supported by Kim or the players, but is in the search warrent), he may have amended his story to fit with that. He just *assumed* that that is what happened -- that two women entered together and then left, though he did not see it. Just one. As for what PB pointed out, you act like two different cell phone clocks are going to be syncronized second for second. His cell phone clock may have been a little slower or the camera used in the picture may have been a little faster. All Kim did was change clothes, go over the routine (which she did outside too, apparently), sip a drink (while Precious spilt hers), and get on with the dance. Could have took just a few minutes. There are other better explanations than some conspiracy theory from the networks or defense attorneys.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#231)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 08:20:47 AM EST
    cpinva, you offered up this:
    if a frog had wings, he wouldn't bump his ass when he hopped. if.
    Or how about this one we use where I live: If your aunt had b*lls, she'd be your uncle. Again, if.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#232)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 08:24:41 AM EST
    The only example I have heard concerning a possible prosecution leak was the leak of the DNA evidence results before the defense team received a faxed copy, but there is no proof of that either - an employee of the private lab could have leaked it.
    The defense confirmed it when they spoke to reporters who told them that the DNA information was leaked by someone on the 6th floor (Nifong's office).

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#233)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 08:38:41 AM EST
    We know his 1:00 AM time is off, by at least 15 minutes. His other times could be way off too. TThese times are hardly unimpeachable.
    What are you talking about? Look, I know you want Bissey's times to be inaccurate by a huge margin so that Reade can be convicted, but off by more than 15 minutes is just pathetic reaching. His time for when Precious renetered the house is at 12:30 while the players say 12:20 or so. Bissey may be off or the players may be off, but whatever the case, the "rape" happened after midnight (see indictment date of offense -- March 14), and the renetering happened at least after 12:14. No time for Reade to be guilty of anything. Time to face reality.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#234)
    by wumhenry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 08:46:15 AM EST
    The disrepancy between Bissey's statement in the TV interview that the two women got out of the car and his sworn statement in which he merely said that he saw them walking away from the car is no great puzzler. There was no apparent motive for Bissey to lie in either statement, and (as SharonInJax has pointed out) there was a strong legal incentive for him to tell the truth in the affidavit. A likely explanation is that when he first saw them they were walking away from the car and he naturally assumed that they had both arrived in it and disembarked together shortly before he looked out the window. When he made the sworn statement, defense lawyers probably warned him to relate only what he actually saw.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#235)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 08:47:01 AM EST
    Nothing really new here, but this is in today's Herald Sun.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#236)
    by wumhenry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 08:57:19 AM EST
    I think that barry's conjecture at 9:19AM (which I hadn't seen when I posted my last comment) is highly plausible. The bottom line is that Bissey's affidavit is probably an accurate account of what he actually saw, and the statement in the TV interview that the women arrived together is probably a mistaken assumption rather than a deliberate misrepresentation.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#237)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 08:59:08 AM EST
    barry posted:
    The defense confirmed it when they spoke to reporters who told them that the DNA information was leaked by someone on the 6th floor (Nifong's office).
    partial transcript of second DNA press conference:
    The first thing I would like to say about that report is that I think that it is very interesting, interesting to note for the ones of you that care to note these things, that this report was leaked by the district attorney`s office, according to press people who have told me specifically that they leaked it to them, several days ago. We only received this report at 5:00 o`clock. I received it at 5:02 this afternoon by fax. I find it interesting that it was leaked that way and faxed to us in a way that was apparently done so that we would not have the opportunity to respond to it. That`s the first thing.
    The second thing is, it makes me sad the way it was leaked and the way it was reported by many people that there was a match in the second DNA test to one of the Duke lacrosse players. Those types of reports that go out all over this nation create a false impression about this particular case and makes it very difficult for these young man to receive a fair trial. And that is one of the reasons that we are speaking out tonight. We feel compelled by the actions of the district attorney`s office to continue to speak out about this case.
    I don't know what azbballfan's source is for this. I'm looking.
    I think Sharon is referring to the press conference the defense team called to discuss the second round of DNA evidence. The press conference was called 2 days after the evidence was leaked. At the time of the leak, Cheshire was quoted as questioning the source of the leak - asking if the DA's office could have leaked the information. Then 2 days later at the press conference, the press started hounding Cheshire on the source of the leak - Cheshire looked like a deer in the headlights - he wouldn't say who was the source but when asked directly if it was Nifong, he said he it wasn't. He knew he was caught and couldn't lie. Then when asked about the DNA evidence on the nail, he started blasting the press for saying it came from skin under the nail - stating emphatically that he never said it came from skin under the nail and the press didn't have a copy of the report, so they couldn't report those details. When asked if he would give the press a redacted version of the report, he said he'd consider it (but didn't).


    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#238)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 09:28:14 AM EST
    Barry says:
    As for what PB pointed out, you act like two different cell phone clocks are going to be syncronized second for second. His cell phone clock may have been a little slower or the camera used in the picture may have been a little faster.
    Hmmm, while I don't know what protocols are actually in use, I would imagine that most cell phones are syncronized to within a few hundred milliseconds. While the clocks on the phones drift by as much as several seconds a day, or possibly even tens of seconds a day, I imagine that they use something like NTP to sync with the network and that each network syncs to master clocks. However, I am willing to be corrected. As far as random non-phone cameras are concerned, they could be all over the place as they rely on the owner setting the time.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#239)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 09:36:00 AM EST
    Newport says:
    cib, my understanding that the "statistics" of white on black gang rape is zero. this would be the first one ever as far as I know
    Hmmm, not exactly. The DoJ survey that you are undoubtedly referring to point out that they found less than 10 cases in their survey, so they could not provide accurate projections. However, the statistics in that survey for black on white vs white on black rape give one pause for thought.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#240)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 09:38:17 AM EST
    Newtort -
    Durga you are a racist.
    How so?
    You just can't accept it because of your "belief system."
    What "belief system"? I'm Agnostic.
    Racism can manifest itself against any enumerated race, white or caucasian being one.
    You can at least have the decency to capitalize Caucasian, you RACIST! But seriously, you seem you to trivialize it by throwing it around and applying it to anybody who disagrees with you. How am I racist?
    And, you hate white men and have shown that on this board.
    Holy redundant redundancy, Batman! Seriously, how am I racist/hate white men? Please show me. While you're at it, you may as well show your proof of how imho hates white people and men. banco55 - (from the Glen Sacks link)
    The FBI's statistic for "unfounded" rape accusations is 9%, but this definition only includes cases where the accuser recants or the evidence contradicts her story.
    That is bull. Well, at least he isn't clear about what is meant by "evidence contradicts her story" - Here -
    The FBI does not separately track false reports; it tracks only the total number of unfounded reports. The category of "unfounded" consists of both baseless cases in which the elements of the crime were never met and false reports. In 1998, unfounded rape reports accounted for 8 percent of total reported rapes; however, this number is questionable. Some police officers incorrectly think that a rape report is unfounded or false if any of the following conditions apply: - the victim has a prior relationship with the offender (including having previously been intimate with him); - the victim used alcohol or drugs at the time of the assault; - there is no visible evidence of injury; - the victim delays disclosure to the police and/or others and does not undergo a rape medical exam; and/or the victim fails to immediately label her assault as rape and/or blames herself.
    Glenn Sacks is an advocative researcher (men's rights activism). What he fails to tell you is -
    According to a nine-year study conducted by former Purdue sociologist Eugene J. Kanin, in over 40 percent of the cases reviewed, the complainants eventually admitted that no rape had occurred (Archives of Sexual Behavior, Vol. 23, No. 1, 1994).
    The problem with this is the same Kanin's reviews also have indicated such lows as .25% (O'Rilley, 1984) and 1% (Krasner, et al., 1976). Sacks leaves that out. A primary cause for such gaps is what is characterized as "unfounded" and when "unfounded" is characterized as "false claim". Or, lies about details is amounted to "false claim" (see: Successfully investigating Acquaintance Sexual Assault: A National Training Manuel for Law Enforcement for more). Also, 1), The sample was of already questionable cases, 2), just because somebody says no rape occurred does not actually mean it didn't. Notice how he doesn't provide you with the available evidence (even if an already questionable one, but "questionable/unfounded" can mean more things).
    Kanin also studied rape allegations in two large Midwestern universities and found that 50 percent of the allegations were recanted by the accuser.
    1) these are local figures and not national ones, 2) "recanted allegations" does not mean it did not actually happen.
    Kanin's findings are hardly unique. In 1985 the Air Force conducted a study of 556 rape accusations. Over one quarter of the accusers admitted, either just before they took a lie detector test of after they had failed it, that no rape occurred. A further investigation by independent reviewers found that 60 percent of the original rape allegations were false.
    Again, local figures. He likely pulled this straight out of Warren Farrell's book, who didn't give you the whole story. The superiors in that case took many of the accusers aside and was hammering them with how if they were drinking at one of their parties then they must have been too soused to know if a rape actually occurred, further were in insinuating the consequences of going forward with it. I'm not sure what that would have made the actual numbers, but this would certainly affect the outcome of a lie-detector test (oh, and try and guess who the independant investigator was). You can probably read about it if you do a Google search of reviews of Warren Farrell's book The Myth of Male Power (though I don't know if they'd still be there).
    According to a 1996 Department of Justice Report, of the roughly 10,000 sexual assault cases analyzed with DNA evidence over the previous seven years, 2,000 excluded the primary suspect, and another 2,000 were inconclusive. The report notes that these figures mirror an informal National Institute of Justice survey of private laboratories, and suggests that there exists "some strong, underlying systemic problems that generate erroneous accusations and convictions."
    What he doesn't tell you is the number of cases where the DNA exonerated people who were misidentified and what percentage of the victims in the case were murdered (it would be hard for them to lie. Just sayin'). Here are the statistics from the Innocence Project -
    EXONERATIONS IN THE UNITED STATES, 1989 THROUGH 2003 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This report summarizes findings from a study of exonerations of defendants convicted of serious crimes in the United States since 1989, when the first DNA exoneration occurred. This is the most comprehensive listing of exonerations to date. We plan to update it periodically. Our purpose is to study overall patterns in the exonerations that have accumulated in the past fifteen years in order to learn about the causes of false convictions, and about the operation of our criminal justice system in general. The following are highlights of our key findings: • We found a total 328 exonerations in that 15-year period, 316 men and 12 women; 145 of them were cleared by DNA, 183 by other sorts of evidence. They had served an average of over ten years in prison for crimes for which they should never have been convicted. Four defendants were exonerated posthumously, after they had died in prison. • The rate of exonerations increased sharply over the 15-year period of the study, from about 12 a year through the early 1990s to an average of 43 a year after 2000. From 1999 on, about half of all exonerations have been based on DNA evidence. • Our count of exonerations is conservative. We consider only exonerations based on investigations in the individual cases of the exonerated defendants. Our database does not include at least 135 additional innocent defendants who were framed by rogue police officers and cleared in two mass exonerations: in 1999-2000 in Los Angeles, in the aftermath of the discovery of the Rampart area police scandal; and in 2003 in Tulia, Texas, when a single dishonest undercover officer was shown to have framed 39 innocent drug defendants. In 88% of the rape cases the exonerations were based on DNA evidence; 20% of the murder exonerations involved DNA, almost all of them for homicides that also included a rape.
    Also -
    Almost 90% of the false convictions in the rape exonerations were based in large part on eyewitness misidentifications. Cross-racial misidentification is a special danger. About 50% of the exonerated rape defendants are black men who were misidentified by white victims, but only 10% or less of all rapes involve black perpetrators and white victims. As a result, black men are greatly over-represented among defendants who are falsely convicted and exonerated for rape.
    So all that stuff about false rape allegations being vanishingly rare is PC BS.
    No, the stuff about it being rampant is TC (traditionally correct) BS.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#241)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 09:49:18 AM EST
    wumhenry posted:
    A likely explanation is that when he first saw them they were walking away from the car and he naturally assumed that they had both arrived in it and disembarked together shortly before he looked out the window.
    What about the guy Jarriel claims flagged down his car? Why didn't Bissey see him when he saw the two women walking up from Kim's car which I assume was parked on the street in front of the house? Kim's version of the accuser's arrival has them meeting for the first time at the back of the house. Kim Roberts' police statement:
    At about 11:30 Precious arrived and came to the back where we met for the first time.
    NPR interview:
    ROBERTS: And being than I am of mixed race I'm sure that they assumed I was the Hispanic one and they were, of course, waiting now for the white girl to arrive. And almost it's kinda funny, because almost as soon as all this conversation is going on, and lo and behold here comes the other dancer around the corner and she's obviously not a white girl.
    The accuser may have been led there by the guy that flagged down the car or walked up alone, but it doesn't sound like Bissey could have seen the two women walking from the car up the alley/driveway at the accuser's first arrival. When he sees them for the first time, it is about 11:50 p.m., they are together near the car he saw drive off about an hour later which would be about when Kim made the 11:53 p.m. 911 call. Kim claims she made the call as soon as she drove off.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#242)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:03:27 AM EST
    banco55 posted:
    It was in reference to someone saying that they can't imagine many women would go through with the SANE exam unless they were really raped. Clearly a certain woman in Durham is willing to go through the exam if it keeps her out of the psych ward.
    Kethra's post from the court tv board:
    Hi all,
    I just wanted to add my personal experiences to this conversation. I am a SANE/ER nurse. With that said, I want to relate to you some statistics I heard on Nancy Grace (yes my mom had the program on). A rape counselor stated the incidence of false reporting is only 2%.
    In my PERSONAL experience that is untrue. False reporting is a MUCH larger percentage. Many of the "rape" claims never make it past the first investigating officer. The victim suddenly does not want to do anything or the victim suddenly walks out of the hospital without being seen. However, there are some misleading issues that are reported as "rape".
    Teenagers: blah blah blah
    Bad Relationships: blah blah blah
    Extramarital affairs: blah blah blah
    blah.......


    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#243)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:06:24 AM EST
    Durga_is_my_homey posted to Newport:
    Seriously, how am I racist/hate white men? Please show me. While you're at it, you may as well show your proof of how imho hates white people and men.
    Let's hear it, Newport.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#244)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:13:47 AM EST
    Wow, after that post by Durga I don't think I need to apologize for lengthy posts anymore.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#245)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:18:17 AM EST
    Look back at your comments where you go on and on and on and on and on and on about somebody calling somebody a name about how they need to "man-up" and admit this horribleness, tell who did this monstrous crime and pay the consequences. What, like having your lacrosse season cancelled, your coach fired, like people you thought were your friends questioning your very character, like not being served food on campus, like having a wanted poster made up displaying your picture and displayed on campus and city streets and much more that I don't need to point out. And for what! Because someone called someone a name over an argument when said person was probably called some name himself and when said person likely felt ripped off by strippers who danced for all of 4 minutes but got paid $800 to dance for two hours. Get off of it Durga and others. They have paid plenty for any transgression they may have committed.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#246)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:20:50 AM EST
    but it doesn't sound like Bissey could have seen the two women walking from the car up the alley/driveway at the accuser's first arrival.
    He may have misinterpreted what he saw a bit. This is eyewitness testimony from a distance after all.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#247)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:23:35 AM EST
    He says "walking from the direction", not up to the "alley way". That's what you say. "walking from the direction" may have been a few steps away from the backyard.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#248)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:26:45 AM EST
    imho posted:
    but it doesn't sound like Bissey could have seen the two women walking from the car up the alley/driveway at the accuser's first arrival.
    barry posted
    He may have misinterpreted what he saw a bit. This is eyewitness testimony from a distance after all.
    In what way? He saw the accuser walking up alone? He saw the accuser and the car flagger-down guy walking up together? Have you seen the photos? The alley/driveway runs between the two houses. He describes their clothing, so he should be close enought to tell if it is one woman, two women, or a man and a woman.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#249)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:30:13 AM EST
    In what way?
    Coming from the "direction of the car"

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#250)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:32:14 AM EST
    imho, what are you getting at here? Tell me your theory.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#251)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:32:15 AM EST
    Regarding things like white on black gang rapes or false rape claims, statistics are wonderful things but really don't speak anything to the facts of the case. I would like to hear a DNA expert talk about the likelihood of a three-man gang rape (four if you can determine exactly how Roberts assisted in the rape) leaves no DNA on the victim, or in her. And maybe the 300 pages being released today will have some more statements from cops who witnessed the AV flailing around for a narrative in the hours after Kroger's.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#252)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:34:01 AM EST
    Ah here we go...this is better: N & O Apr 21, 2006
    Defense lawyers have said that the woman arrived at the party already impaired and battered and concocted a story.
    Jason Bissey, who lives next door to the university-owned house, said Thursday that he had a clear view of the accuser's arrival and that she did not appear to be impaired. He said he saw her walk up a long alley to the rear of the lacrosse house, then talk to the other woman hired to dance before entering the home.
    "They were both totally lucid. [The accuser] was not impaired in any way, I remember clearly," Bissey said Thursday. "It was a kind of a long way to walk so it would have been pretty clear if she was messed up."
    This sounds more accurate than his sworn testimony.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#253)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:35:44 AM EST
    Thanks for posting that, imho. So he was a little mistaken.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#254)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:36:47 AM EST
    Also more accurate than his account to Rita Cosby.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#255)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:38:13 AM EST
    Posted by beenaround June 22, 2006 10:28 AM Hmmm, while I don't know what protocols are actually in use, I would imagine that most cell phones are syncronized to within a few hundred milliseconds. While the clocks on the phones drift by as much as several seconds a day, or possibly even tens of seconds a day, I imagine that they use something like NTP to sync with the network and that each network syncs to master clocks.
    My Treo "smartphone" doesn't have any sort of time synchronization - setting the time is strictly manual. It is a GSM phone on T-Mobile's network. I can't recall any of my previous phones having any sort of automatic time sync either.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#256)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:38:42 AM EST
    We could probably do with a litle less race-baitng around here, too. Unless someone says something specifically racist, it doesn't add anything to the argument. We're all informed by racism one way or another. My, it's hot out here today. I think I'll find a chair somewhere by the beach and sip on something with lots of ice in it.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#257)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:42:35 AM EST
    Beenaround, would you please post the statistics to which you refer. I would like to see them.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#258)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:45:02 AM EST
    imho:
    This sounds more accurate than his sworn testimony.
    Please define "accurate." And that cannot be that it most closely approximates what you want him to hve seen. In the statement (not quoted so it is the reporter's memorialization of what he/she remembered Bissey saying, not his actual words) Bissey does not say the AV walked alone down the alley. God, I'm start to quibble. I think I'm coming down with imhonifongitis.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#259)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:46:39 AM EST
    smokinburt:
    My Treo "smartphone" doesn't have any sort of time synchronization - setting the time is strictly manual. It is a GSM phone on T-Mobile's network. I can't recall any of my previous phones having any sort of automatic time sync either.
    I stand corrected. However, I do recall talking to some people with Treo 700s who claimed that their phones switched over to daylight savings time automatically and that the time was set from the network. Time to check it out some more.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#260)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:47:47 AM EST
    Sorry Bob, but the only motivation for the kinds of things that Durgha says is hatred of white men, plain and simple, and that is racism, plain and simple. You don't have to make explicit "racist" remarks to demonstrate your "racism." No one would seriously argue that Victoria Peterson is not racist. They comments made here by some echo comments made by her. Race baiting and race pandering is a form of racism, i.e., a form of speech designed to inflame the passions of one racial group against another.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#261)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:51:45 AM EST
    Bissey does not say the AV walked alone down the alley.
    I think she did walk alone for a period, and eventually met up with "Nikki" just outside the backyard. They walked together the rest of the way (a few steps maybe), and this is what Bissey speaks of in his sworn testimony. "coming from the direction of the car, and proceeded to the backyard".

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#262)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:52:19 AM EST
    smokinburt, it seems that you can buy a time sync feature for quite a number of phones: Time Sync synchronizes your Treo's clock with an atomic clock via the wireless connection Perhaps some networks offer that for free. More variables to consider. In any event, call logs will have accurate time stamps :-)

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#263)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:53:06 AM EST
    Here's one article/blog about rape statistics, focusing on the racial aspect.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#264)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:55:19 AM EST
    This, from the article I cited in my last post:
    The "victim" made some very poor choices and has suffered for them, whether or not at the hands of the Duke lacrosse team. No one forced her to strip to pay for her college tuition, as Jackson seems to suggest. But she is a person, not a walking metaphor for black women everywhere. Her choices are not the choices of all black women, and it is not blaming the victim to observe that her own behavior has raised real questions as to her credibility. The "accused perpetrators" are hardly angels either. Their very presence at that house makes them look bad - if the victim's choices are fair game, so are those of her accused attackers. But their race and class should not be used against them, as so many pundits have done. The data on rape attacks by race and class support this contention, and those who insist on invoking inflammatory and outdated stereotypes are doing so in defiance of the facts on rape and race in this country.


    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#265)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:55:42 AM EST
    Thank you Sharon, that is what I was looking for.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#266)
    by Jo on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 10:56:44 AM EST
    for all you folks worried about spending 20 years behind bars for a false accusation for rape ... the average length of time behind bars for any convicted sex crime? 128 days ...
    I know this has been corrected to reflect closer to 5 years, but you seem to indicate that being convicted of rape based on a false charge is not that big of a deal. Hey, it's only 128 days, right? But what else is involved here? The community is told that you are found GUILTY of rape. You are officially guilty. It no longer matters that you committed no crime. To your family, your friends, your neighbors, and the whole world, it is declared that you are guilty. How will you be treated by the guards and other prisoners during your incarceration? Can a white college age male expect any special treatment from some of the hardened African-American prisoners after being declared guilty of raping a black woman? Do you think there might be a loss of employment involved? After "serving your time", it's time to move on with your life and find another job. Can't live too close to a school or daycare facility because you're required to register on the lifelong "Sex Offender" list. But you can live near other convicted rapists and child molesters. Recent employment to list on your resume: dishwashing and laundry. How about that question on the application, "Have you ever been convicted of a felony? If yes, please explain _____". This all sounds pretty bad, but the truly sad part is, this isn't the result of someone having committed a crime. This is just someone who was convicted on a accusation for rape.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#267)
    by JK on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 11:00:55 AM EST
    Re: False Rape Accusation Statistics I cannot think of any reliable methodology for accurately estimating the number of false rape accusations. I think that most of the research is being done by, as Durga puts its, "advocative researcher[s]" on both sides. (I also question the validity of much of the research on unreported rapes, but that is another topic.) More importantly, as Bob has repeated many times, none of these statistics has any bearing on whether this case involves a false accusation.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#268)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 11:05:21 AM EST
    IMHO quotes Bissey: "They were both totally lucid. [The accuser] was not impaired in any way, I remember clearly," Bissey said Thursday. "It was a kind of a long way to walk so it would have been pretty clear if she was messed up." But, of course, if Bissey can't see around a corner he can't see into the AV's mind. The AV said she had taken flexeril and two 22-ounce beers (I think that was her final story). Bissey couldn't see into the AV's stomach or veins or brain. Did the AV lie to the police about the flexeril and beer? Unlikely. Was she immune from it? Unlikely. Was she trying to appear sober when she first got to the Buchanan house? More likely. Was Bissey looking for signs of intoxication at the time he observed her? Unlikely. Was it clear to Bissey that she had taken a muscle relaxer and had downed 44 ounces of beer but that she was sober? Bissey knew nothing about whatever the AV consumed prior to showing up at the party. His judgment, that she showed up at the party sober, was probably arrived at later. When you see people walking you don't notice their sobriety. You presume their sobriety. I'm not sure what Bissey meant when he used the expression "totally lucid." He didn't engage the AV in conversation and so could not have measured her lucidity. Perhaps the two strippers were discussing Proust on the walk to the house. But unlikely. In short, his observation is only good as to how she walked to the house. She did not appear falling down drunk upon her arrival. I have no idea if IMHO is trying to rehabilitate the date rape drug story which Nifong floated without, apparently, actually having any test for it. It really is pretty useless information. The AV admitted to taking a mix of drugs and alcohol that would have explained her erratic behavior shortly after her arrival and for hours thereafter. There is very little time for a date rape drug to have begun acting if within a few minutes after her entry at the Buchanan house she was "out of control." The whole theory of drugging strippers at your house in order to rape them is a pretty unlikely scenario anyway, with an entirely different person making "concoctions" that would enable others to rape the dancers. Except according to the AV, she was fighting them off, which means that if they had given the strippers drugs to knock them out, they didn't wait around for the drug to kick in. Bissey's observations as good as to the coming and going of the strippers and that will help in establishing a true timeline.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#269)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 11:10:58 AM EST
    jk, no but it shows that false accusations happen and that false accusations are not as rare as some would like us to believe. That is the point and it is a good one.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#270)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 11:11:12 AM EST
    Newport asks:
    Beenaround, would you please post the statistics to which you refer. I would like to see them.
    Criminal Victimization in the United States, 2003 Statiscical Tables Table 40 is interesting. Remember that blacks make up about 14.4% of the US population, but are reported to be responsible for 24% of sexual assaults and rapes. Table 46 reports that multiple offender rape and sexual assaults where the offenders are all black occurred 21% of the time where as the offenders being all white occurred 57% of the time, but in each case, the estimates are based on 10 or fewer cases. I though that there was also data relating to black on white and white on black rape and sexual assault, but I cannot find it. I can only find that data for the more general category of violence in table 48 from which we can infer some things, but again the wite on black case is based on 10 or fewer sample cases.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#271)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 11:13:27 AM EST
    Yeah, it makes a lot of sense to drug the dancers with a date rape drug when they're 20 guys in the next room expecting them to put on a show. I don't think they wanted the strippers to be passing out during their routine.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#272)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 11:27:17 AM EST
    Noname, I apologize. I certainly wouldn't want to attribute quotes to you that you didn't make. Newport -
    Look back at your comments where you go on and on and on and on and on and on about somebody calling somebody a name about how they need to "man-up" and admit this horribleness, tell who did this monstrous crime and pay the consequences.
    Actually, I said they should man-up to what corroborating evidence, as well as their own lawyer I believe, shows they said. Or, if you prefer, clear things up. That was twice, I believe. You injected those emotive terms yourself, including "pay the consequences". If people don't like them because of the things that they said, that is their own d*mn fault. They should do this at least for the guys who had no part in what they said. Still haven't answered my question, though. How does that show I hate white men? Because I think people should be accountable for their actions and what they say, even white men? I'm calling them to task for what they did say - racist and sexist/demeaning - yet you accuse men of hating white men and race-baiting for doing so yet you ignore the fact that they did and then turn around and do your own little brand of race baiting because I disagree with you.
    What, like having your lacrosse season cancelled, your coach fired, like people you thought were your friends questioning your very character,
    If my friends have said things like that, I'd question their character too. It is up to them to man-up to what was said. But you are likely talking about the rape accusations which is irrelevant to what I'm talking about. This is something that we apparently know has happened.
    like not being served food on campus, like having a wanted poster made up displaying your picture and displayed on campus and city streets and much more that I don't need to point out.
    How does anything of this show I hate white men?
    And for what! Because someone called someone a name over an argument when said person was probably called some name himself
    Actually, it started with "shove this up you're a*s" apparently. Or is that okay, because you're going to hypothesize that Kim or Precious suggested the same to them ... in which case apparently it would be a big deal? So ... are you going to show how imho and I hate men/white people, or what?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#273)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 11:31:00 AM EST
    Regarding attendees' comments that the AV arrived at the party intoxicated, they hadn't seen her walking up to the house. They saw her once she was in the house. Again, Bissey isn't blessed with x-ray eyes. Once the AV was in the house it would have been impossible for him to see the AV "out of control," as Roberts described her. So Bissey's observations, while overstating what he could actually determine by watching the AV, and the attendees' observations that she was intoxicated, are not necessarily in conflict or intentionally misleading. IMHO uses this quote: Defense lawyers have said that the woman arrived at the party already impaired and battered and concocted a story. We know that the AV arrived at the party with flexeril and 44 ounces of alcohol in her system. That's enough to seriously impair a man who's six-foot two. (Previous research) We also know that the AV concocted several stories after the fact, because at the most only one of them could have been true. Regarding the AV's injuries, her description of the attack and rape doesn't match up with what the medical personnel found. If the SANE examination has a complete head to toe description of bruises and scratches, with approximate times of origin, then we can then discuss her injuries. The father made some remarkable observations of his daughter's condition which don't seem to be borne out by anything seen by the SANE nurse. Was he lying to advance his daughter's case? Could be. The defense lawyers were given warrants basically describing an assault and resultant injuries that the AV didn't suffer. So IMHO wants to blame the defense attorneys, who didn't examine the AV, for responding to claims that were lies? A possible scenario: Defense Attorney: The search warrant says she was choked and punched and kicked. Student: She must have been beaten up before she got there. The AV showed up loaded but could still walk straight. Bissey did not ask her to recite the alphabet backwards. Once inside the party the AV let it rip. She stumbled into things, fell on the back stairs, and was generally out of control.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#274)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 11:33:04 AM EST
    Slight correction. 44 ounces of alcohol should be 44 ounces of an alcoholic beverage.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#275)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 11:37:38 AM EST
    I guess Durgha the bottom line is this: I just don't see the moral reprehensibility in the players' conduct that you do. Boorish, perhaps, aweful, terrible, reprehensible, no. Durga is my homey, this is what you did say:
    So, is anybody ever going to suggest these "boys" be accountable for the behavior on their part we are aware of? Is anybody going to say, "hey, come forward and man-up to what was said by whom"? Let us know who said "thank your grandpa for my cotton shirt!"? Let us know who said, "(she is/they're) just a stripper". Let us know who said, "(...)shove this broom handle up your (a*s/whatever)"? I mean, my gosh, even Kim has been honest about her past/actions and she isn't even charged with a crime.
    I suggest you review it carefully.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#276)
    by wumhenry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 11:38:04 AM EST
    IMHO wrote:
    The accuser may have been led there by the guy that flagged down the car or walked up alone, but it doesn't sound like Bissey could have seen the two women walking from the car up the alley/driveway at the accuser's first arrival.
    Be that as it may, it's evident from Bissey's account of ensuing events in Paragraph 5 of his affidavit that when he saw the women enter the house at 12:00 they had not yet begun performing. And according to the AV's timeline, the rape did not occur until well after that -- after they stopped performing, left the house, and were cajoled into re-entering.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#277)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 11:47:56 AM EST
    Another question arises: Can someone explain about the extremely short skirt that the AV was wearing according to Bissey? I thought she showed up in that red lingerie thingie. That skirt was so short it apparently didn't exist. Now I'm going to look for that drink with lots of ice cubes.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#278)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 12:12:08 PM EST
    Bob, don't the pictures of the accuser on the back porch show her wearing some sort of white/light colored corset-garter type garment? I see the red "bra" and "panties," and something I can't identify around her midsection. I think it has garter straps on it? Is it possible this was pulled down lower over her hips and appeared to be a skirt? I don't remember the search warrant finding any of her clothing, not even the shoe.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#279)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 12:23:56 PM EST
    I guess Durgha the bottom line is this: I just don't see the moral reprehensibility in the players' conduct that you do.
    I don't care. What did I and imho say that shows we hate whites, white men, and/or men?
    Boorish, perhaps, aweful, terrible, reprehensible, no.
    ... Yet what I've said and imho has (both yet to be identified) is racist/man-hating???
    Durga is my homey, this is what you did say:
    I know what I said. It was partly in response to that p*ss-poor article. I certainly don't think Precious and Kim are responsible for what the players said and how they behaved. I do want them to have some accountability for it. They'd do better for it. But, again, where was I and imho racist/man-hating?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#280)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 12:39:02 PM EST
    Durga is my homey, I do not know what is in your heart. I do know what your words have been and your words suggest to me that you harbor ill-will and racism toward white men. You minimize the actions of the strippers, yet you continually amplify your perceived transgressions committed by white men. Durga, I will not respond to you further.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#281)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 12:50:19 PM EST
    On TV they just said the hearing will start any minute. I guess you all know it is live on wral.com.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#282)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 01:52:55 PM EST
    Jo: excellent post about the consequences of a conviction, beyond the "time served."

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#283)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 01:57:31 PM EST
    The judge has modified Seligmann's bond and reduced it to $100,000.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#284)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 01:58:33 PM EST
    Damn, Newport, you're going to run out of people to respond to. And Durga: still wondering what specific instances you consider to be examples of how Kim "has been honest about her past/actions and she isn't even charged with a crime."

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#285)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:11:36 PM EST
    notes of hearing I watched on WRAL: 1. There is no toxicology report. So much for the date rape drug theory. 2. There are no further medical reports from Duke University based on the March 14 rape allegation. All parts of the SANE/rape kit have been turned over. 3. No records from drunk tank (Durham access center) 4. cell phone records of accuser turned over to defense. 5. Gotleib reports not completely done yet. 6. Judge Titus next judge. 7. Nifong will not be ordered to turn over meeting notes of meetings between Nifong, investigators and the accuser. Says they are not discoverable work product. Judge takes his word for it. 8. Accuser said she went to Duke after 1993 Creedmore rape allegation. Osborn wants the records. Nifong says he doesn't think they exist but he will check around. 9. Judge does not look angry with Nifong at all. 10. No substantive motions were discussed whatsoever. No hearing dates were set, no responses were ordered to be filed. Motions will continue to be thrown over the transom into limbo land. Great system they have down there. 11. July 20th next "setting." 12. 536 more pages of discovery turned over. That's it.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#286)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:13:57 PM EST
    COUSIN SAYS $2 MILLION 'HUSH MONEY' OFFERED by CASH MICHAELS The Wilmington Journal Originally posted 6/22/2006
    Cousin: Duke alleged raped victim turned down money to drop case
    [DURHAM, NC] The cousin of the alleged victim in the Duke University lacrosse rape case says "alums of Duke" quietly offered the accuser lots of money - a staggering $2 million - early on to drop the charges, and go on with her life.
    "She told me they wanted her to make the case go away," Jakki (she will not reveal her last name in order to protect her family), the designated family spokesperson, told The Carolinian and Wilmington Journal newspapers in an exclusive interview June 19.
    However Jakki adds that her younger cousin, the Black woman at the center of the nation's most controversial criminal case, refused because she insists that she was indeed beaten and sodomized by the three indicted white Duke lacrosse team members - Colin Finnerty, Reade Seligmann and David Evans - each charged with first-degree rape, first-degree sexual assault and first-degree kidnapping.
    "It's not about the money to her," Jakki says. "It's about her [being] brutally raped, sodomized, called a 'nigger.' Can you imagine being choked and held down? The thought of it - it reminds me of slavery days when the women were brutally raped by the masters - makes me furious because they want to make these [Duke players] out to be golden boys."
    The alleged victim told her family the trial must proceed, and she wants justice done. Because she remains in seclusion, the alleged victim could not be reached for comment.
    Sam Hall, communications director for Duke University Alumni Affairs, told The Wilmington Journal that after checking with other officials at the university about the "alums of Duke" allegation, "We have no information about that."
    "I think there's been a rumor of it since the beginning, but...I've never heard it discussed," Hall added.
    However other sources have confirmed to The Carolinian and Wilmington Journal newspapers that early in the case, Black leaders, whose names cannot be revealed, were also allegedly approached by persons concerned about the fallout of the Duke rape controversy, and offered sums of money for themselves, NCCU and the alleged victim, if they could influence her to retract her allegations.
    Those sources told The Wilmington Journal that those leaders flatly refused the offer. It is not clear whether this was an alleged attempt separate from what the alleged victim told her cousin, Jakki, or if the alleged attempt was one in the same. It is also not clear whether Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong was ever informed of it.


    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#287)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:15:18 PM EST
    Newport, you said, in part:
    9. Judge does not look angry with Nifong at all.
    But Stephens did give Nifongollum a bit of a slap down when he started in about how the defense attorneys "may not be familiar with trying rape cases" or words to that effect.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#288)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:15:19 PM EST
    This case is not going away. There is no mechanism for that to happen.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#289)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:19:56 PM EST
    LOL, imho, you actually believe her cousin? LOL! There claims are going to come back to haunt them, like the "victim's" father's claim on television that the accuser was raped with a broomstick, a type of assault that would have left severe injuries. Oh yeah, did you here the MSNBC reporter who said that in the new documents, the accuser claimed that 5 men raped her? LOL!

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#290)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:21:55 PM EST
    IMHO quotes from the Wilmington Journal:
    However Jakki adds that her younger cousin, the Black woman at the center of the nation's most controversial criminal case, refused because she insists that she was indeed beaten and sodomized by the three indicted white Duke lacrosse team members - Colin Finnerty, Reade Seligmann and David Evans - each charged with first-degree rape, first-degree sexual assault and first-degree kidnapping.
    So, more than 10 years ago (from what I recall), she was beaten over an extended period and raped by three guys. She reported these events but decided not to persue the case. Then some time later, her husband threatened to kill her, which she reported, but decided not to persue. Now, she is offered $2M to quietly drop the case, but this time around she is much more diligent. And she has kids to feed and all. What has changed? Clearly her imagination has become more active as time went by.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#291)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:25:22 PM EST
    What has changed? She was called a n*gger while raped according to her story.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#292)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:26:00 PM EST
    Same as the Tawana Brawley case.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#293)
    by ding7777 on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:28:18 PM EST
    It is not clear whether this was an alleged attempt separate from what the alleged victim told her cousin, Jakki, or if the alleged attempt was one in the same. It is also not clear whether Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong was ever informed of it.
    It is not clear...It is also not clear... instead of verifying, the WJ justs repeats unsubstantiated rumors Is the BlackPressUSA Network biased?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#294)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:28:49 PM EST
    Given the track record of the accuser for not telling the truth, the offer never happened. I don't believe for a second that "other sources" that would speak with Mr. Michaels would not have held a press conference immediately to announce the offer the second it were made. Seeing as how the prosecution turned over what evidence they had without any bombshells, it looks like the facts available not only create reasonable doubt but also preclude any potential Nifong theory for how this went down. Sorry, IMHO, but if this is the only argument for the I'm sure the legal fees to disprove the accuser's lies and Nifong's persecution will run over $2 million and enrich the Durham bar association.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#295)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:31:58 PM EST
    Hmm, I notice that the actual charges are:
    each charged with first-degree rape, first-degree sexual assault and first-degree kidnapping.
    I guess that there is no such charge as brutal gang rape since each individual perp would be charged separately. However, I would have thought that there was a category of crime that indicated that the perps acted together ... oh well.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#296)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:32:26 PM EST
    This accuser's whole family are liars and bigots. You have her father reporting severe injuries on his daughter that were not observed by any of the doctors and nurses who examined her. You have aunt "Shirly" who claimed to have saw the accuser with severe black eyes while passing her in a car. Again, not corroberated by the examining physicians. You have her father, again, putting his foot in his mouth with his claims that a broomstick was used, at one point attributing this new information to his daughter even though she never claimed such a thing to investigators. Another change in her story. Now you have another lie coming from her cousin involving bribes. This Addam's family is not interested in truth or justice.
    beaten and sodomized by the three indicted white Duke lacrosse team members
    Beaten? No evidence. Sodomized? No evidence. There should have been though if she was telling the truth.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#297)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:33:37 PM EST
    By Newport:
    There is no toxicology report. So much for the date rape drug theory.
    And so much for procedure being followed.
    There are no further medical reports from Duke University based on the March 14 rape allegation. All parts of the SANE/rape kit have been turned over.
    Interesting.
    No records from drunk tank (Durham access center)
    I'm getting the idea of how things work in Durham.
    cell phone records of accuser turned over to defense.
    Finally.
    Nifong will not be ordered to turn over meeting notes of meetings between Nifong, investigators and the accuser. Says they are not discoverable work product. Judge takes his word for it.
    My emphasis. Not discoverable work product. Hmm. Lineups?
    Accuser said she went to Duke after 1993 Creedmore rape allegation. Osborn wants the records. Nifong says he doesn't think they exist but he will check around.
    WTF?
    Judge does not look angry with Nifong at all.
    He's grooming Nifong to succeed him to the bench. Angels and ministers of grace defend us!
    No substantive motions were discussed whatsoever. No hearing dates were set, no responses were ordered to be filed. Motions will continue to be thrown over the transom into limbo land. Great system they have down there.
    My emphasis. Uh-huh.
    536 more pages of discovery turned over.
    Seems like a lot. Good thing they asked for it. Thank you for the summary.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#298)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:35:49 PM EST
    The rape and kidnapping charges carry 25-30 years in NC. The accused face 50 years in the state prison, essentially the rest of their natural born lives. Let's see what we have here: 1) a case that is not going away because there is no mechanism for it that I see; 2) a prosecutor who won't quit; and 3) an accuser who won't testify and is nowhere to be found. Conclusion: case doesn't go away until right before trial, just like the Kobe case.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#299)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:40:18 PM EST
    The deus ex machina here is the write-in campaign against Nifong. Newport, you're otherwise correct. Durham is a joke.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#300)
    by JK on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:43:35 PM EST
    Newport posted:
    Conclusion: case doesn't go away until right before trial, just like the Kobe case.
    Careful with this analogy. Some might think (especially with the recent rumors) you're implying a big pay-off.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#301)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:43:43 PM EST
    Atl52, ah, but the write-in campain will not work because of the genius of the republican candidate entering the race. Cheeks and the republican will split the white vote and Nifong will capture close to 100 percent of the black vote. Nifong wins and keeps his job.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#302)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:44:56 PM EST
    atl152 writes:
    The deus ex machina here is the write-in campaign against Nifong.
    It has a much greater chance of succeeding if a candidate can get on the ballot by gathering the 6000+ signatures required. Anyone heard anything about how that's going? The deadline is around the end of June I think.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#303)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:49:29 PM EST
    But Newport, Cheek has never struck me as being really enthusiastic about the prospect of running. Everything he says sounds lukewarm, like the whole prospect makes him feel queasy.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#304)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:50:57 PM EST
    Madison, Maybe so. If they both get on the ballot maybe Mr. Cheek would just drop out because he would realize he could not win under those circumstances.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#305)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:51:35 PM EST
    Now this is a stretch, but perhaps only 1 of the 2 write-in candidates generates enough signatures to beat the campaign entry deadline. Could the defendants bring a civil suit against the City of Durham and the police department now? The benefits would be to shine a light on their misdeeds and put some pressure on the bureaucrats to act.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#306)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:53:34 PM EST
    And Durga: still wondering what specific instances you consider to be examples of how Kim "has been honest about her past/actions and she isn't even charged with a crime."
    I'm still wondering why you accused me of bringing up something I didn't when you couldn't be bothered enough to read through the posts comprehensively and then when you found out it was in fact BiP who was once again trying to denigrate those who hold opposing view-points, you suddenly didn't care anymore.
    Durga is my homey, I do not know what is in your heart.
    I have a few posts that suggest you believe otherwise...
    I do know what your words have been and your words suggest to me that you harbor ill-will and racism toward white men.
    What words? It'll have to explain how can you possibly say addressing a few men on one team at one school in one city in one state in one country on one continent could somehow amount to all white men.
    You minimize the actions of the strippers,
    What "actions of the strippers" am I minimizing? Their criminal history? I haven't addressed that much either way so you can't say I minimized it. Plus, we aren't talking about "past criminal history" with regards to the players, either, we are talking about the racist and sexist and demeaning comments they made to towards the women at the party, so that isn't much of a comparison (perhaps if I made a big deal out of the criminal histories of the players, yet was dismissive of that of the women. As it stands I don't really care either way. However, I did mention Collin's possible crime against the one guy over the word "gay", but only in response to people focusing completely on the crimes of Precious). The only other possibility I can think of is what Kim seems to have said to one of the guys as far as their manhood, but by that time it appears the "shoving" comment had already been said. If we find out otherwise, I'd want her to be accountable as well. But then as it stands, she doesn't seem to be babied and looked at through rose-tinted glasses here as the "boys" seem to be. Nor does she have as much at stake as these men do, yet the chance they have to clear their "friends" of the stigma of being believed to have said such things they don't even take.
    yet you continually amplify your perceived transgressions committed by white men.
    In the context of how it seems to be ignored, in the context of how it seems to be dismissed, in the context of how it seems to be excused, in the context of how people seem to not want to admit any damage to their reputation is likely due to their own words that may reflect on their character, in the context of which people accuse others of bringing race into this unnecessarily yet ignore the fact that the ones who brought race into this unnecessarily were a few of the players themselves? Yes, I do. Whether they are white men or not, this is still the case. They certainly aren't *every* white man. Thank the Good Dude. Now why does imho hate men and white people?
    Durga, I will not respond to you further.
    Suit yourself.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#307)
    by wumhenry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:54:59 PM EST
    There claims are going to come back to haunt them
    Maybe not. Unless the cousin or the AV identifies the people who allegedly offered hush money it will be impossible to disprove this story. (Needless to say, "impossible to disprove" is not the same as "true.")

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#308)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:55:56 PM EST
    Not likely. The City and the Police department would be close to absolutely immune from such a suit. The only real hope is that the next Judge is not a Nifong crony and has some guts to do what is right and order pre-trial hearings and start granting motions that exclude things. Not going to happen down there. If it were in Federal Court sure, Durham, no way.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#309)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:57:08 PM EST
    Madison posted:
    It has a much greater chance of succeeding if a candidate can get on the ballot by gathering the 6000+ signatures required. Anyone heard anything about how that's going? The deadline is around the end of June I think.
    DA petition drives crawl in Durham challenges
    Cheek's campaign plans to send petitions to 25,000 households today, a mass mailing that will cost $15,000. Through an e-mail campaign to registered voters who voted in the past two primaries, the group had collected 25 signatures by Tuesday evening.


    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#310)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 02:58:18 PM EST
    "I think there's been a rumor of it since the beginning, but...I've never heard it discussed," Hall added.
    I wonder what the nature of the circumstances for "think there has been a rumor of it" were?
    However other sources have confirmed to The Carolinian and Wilmington Journal newspapers that early in the case, Black leaders, whose names cannot be revealed, were also allegedly approached by persons concerned about the fallout of the Duke rape controversy, and offered sums of money for themselves, NCCU and the alleged victim, if they could influence her to retract her allegations.
    I'd like to see those sources and the particulars of it...

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#311)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:04:32 PM EST
    Durga, that was me, not Newport, who said
    And Durga: still wondering what specific instances you consider to be examples of how Kim "has been honest about her past/actions and she isn't even charged with a crime."
    The rest is Newport's I think.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#312)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:05:17 PM EST
    Madison:
    Not discoverable work product. Hmm. Lineups?
    I think I caught Nifong mentioning they discussed the DNA results (and how to spin them?).

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#313)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:06:19 PM EST
    ding7777:
    Is the BlackPressUSA Network biased?
    Yup.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#314)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:08:19 PM EST
    alt52 posted:
    Sorry, IMHO, but if this is the only argument for the (???)
    Don't apologize to me, I didn't write the article.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#315)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:08:51 PM EST
    Durga, that was me, not Newport, who said
    Whoop, I assumed it was you after I had c&p'ed it half-a*sed as you had asked something similar earlier which I hadn't addressed.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#316)
    by wumhenry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:09:19 PM EST
    I'd like to see those sources and the particulars of it.
    So would I. Wouldn't offering hush money to the star witness for the prosecution in a rape case be criminal witness tampering? If Nifong really takes this case as seriously as he pretends to, he ought to call the cousin in for interrogation and push her to name names.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#317)
    by wumhenry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:14:34 PM EST
    In fact, he ought to subpoena her, and if she refuses to name names he ought to threaten her with summary prosecution for criminal contempt.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#318)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:17:20 PM EST
    Madison, are you prescient?
    He's grooming Nifong to succeed him to the bench.
    From Nifong's website bio:
    In the course of his career as a prosecutor, Nifong has worked for three different District Attorneys, serving as Chief Assistant under both Ronald L. Stephens and James E. Hardin, Jr., both of whom now serve as Superior Court Judges.
    Stephens presided over both court proceedings as well as signed the nontestimonial identification order for pictures and DNA samples from 46 of 47 team members.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#319)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:17:59 PM EST
    What has changed? Newport posted:
    She was called a n*gger while raped according to her story
    MSNBC GRAPHIC
    DUKE UNIVERSITY RAPE INVESTIGATION ACCUSER'S STATEMENT TO POLICE
    Matt grabbed me and looked at me. He said, 'Sweetheart, you can't leave.' He grabbed the back of my neck and said, 'I'm going to kill you, n----- b---- if you don't shut up"...They started kicking me in my behind and my back...Matt hit me in the face while Brett kicked me."


    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#320)
    by wumhenry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:18:55 PM EST
    He should also put the AV under oath and ask her to confirm or deny the hush-money story. If she confirms it, he should order her to name names.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#321)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:20:18 PM EST
    mik wrote:
    I think I caught Nifong mentioning they discussed the DNA results (and how to spin them?).
    Ahh. Try this. I imagine that Mr. Nifong was not too happy the day the lab returned no matches to the 46 players, after all those public statements and promises. The accuser may have been the only person not surprised (I have to grant the possibility). Since by this time he had really committed himself and was deriving benefit from persuing this prosecution, I will postulate that these meetings included questions like, "WELL, WHO THE H*LL'S F***ING DNA IS IT?!?" Just a thought.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#322)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:22:26 PM EST
    Esactly right Madison. You have shown the abilities of a sooth sayer here.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#323)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:22:30 PM EST
    mik asked:
    Madison, are you prescient?
    Absolutely not. A few days ago I read the very document you quoted.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#324)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:23:03 PM EST
    And, of course, I meant that in a good way.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#325)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:23:18 PM EST
    She was called a n*gger while raped according to her story
    She may have got that information watching Dan Abrams when that quote was aired. She's not credible. No one in her family is. Especially Aunt Shirly who claimed that she saw the accuser with her eyes swollen shut.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#326)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:29:44 PM EST
    The question I was actually responding to re what has changed was in reference to the Creedmore rape allegation and other allegations the FA has made in the past. The question was what has changed now that she won't take 2 million to get out of this when she wouldn't even follow-up on the previous charges. It was a very insightful question and I provided one possible response. Some on this board would agree that the difference between the charges that I pointed out is so terrible that it would cause the FA to not take the 2 million. imho merely was attempting to take out of context something I said to attack. Whew!

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#327)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:33:30 PM EST
    The Wilmington Journal:
    Duke players' parents were unavailable for comment on the payoff attempt (rumor has it they were too busy swimming in their money pools and being cruel to animals). Defense attorneys only touched their hands together and cackled, "excellent". The AV has yet to comment as well, as she is traveling the world curing sick children with her Light of Goodness.


    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#328)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:39:14 PM EST
    Sports Illustrated has an upcoming article on the case: The Damage Done. There seem to be some notable points. For instance, when the three co-captains went to the police station without lawyers, they gave DNA samples and offered to take polygraph tests. Apparently, their lie-detector offer was denied, because the police indicated that, "the DNA test would be a better proof of innocence." If accurate, this reads to me that, from the detectives' understanding of the alleged crime, they expected to find an abundance of DNA material from the three supposed perpetrators. Next: "It has been almost two months, says the accuser's mother, since they have seen or talked to their daughter or her two young children." Yikes. Next: "After his arrest, Seligmann told more than one teammate, 'I'm glad they picked me.' " Next: "More and more the case has become as much about Nifong's actions as about what happened that night." Etc...etc...etc...

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#329)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:41:04 PM EST
    Durga,
    What words? It'll have to explain how can you possibly say addressing a few men on one team at one school in one city in one state in one country on one continent could somehow amount to all white men.
    LOL, is this a good argument? If someone claimed one person was a ###$%#$#$^%%^, wouldn't you claim that person was a racist or, to be a racist, would said person have to find every person living or dead of a certain racial group and utter the same ####$#$%? I couldn't resist.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#330)
    by ding7777 on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:51:21 PM EST
    I wonder how ofter Precious hears n----- b---- and just assumed that white college boys talk like Rap lyrics

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#331)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 03:58:52 PM EST
    Newport posted:
    imho merely was attempting to take out of context something I said to attack. Whew!
    I thought you were asking a question.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#332)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:04:01 PM EST
    Court TV "journalist" Beth Karras said DNA was found underneath a fingernail. It was consistent with David Evans.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#333)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:04:21 PM EST
    LOL, is this a good argument?
    In the circumstances? Yes.
    If someone claimed one person was a ###$%#$#$^%%^, wouldn't you claim that person was a racist or, to be a racist, would said person have to find every person living or dead of a certain racial group and utter the same ####$#$%?
    Mmm-hmm, except the problem is, I haven't said "###$%#$#$^%%^" or "####$#$%", have I? It is a non-issue. Hence, It'll have to explain how can you possibly say addressing a few men on one team at one school in one city in one state in one country on one continent could somehow amount to all white men. since nothing I said was race-specific. So then what were the words I used, non ####$#$%, that shows I feel a certain way about all white men and am racist? Have you figured out what imho has said that proves s/he hates men and white people?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#334)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:06:18 PM EST
    imho-
    Court TV "journalist" Beth Karras said DNA was found underneath a fingernail.
    For the love of GOD, don't tell Abrams.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#335)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:07:45 PM EST
    ding7777
    I wonder how ofter Precious hears n----- b---- and just assumed that white college boys talk like Rap lyrics.
    According to witnesses someone at the party said both that night.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#336)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:12:00 PM EST
    IMHO says:
    I wonder how ofter Precious hears n----- b---- and just assumed that white college boys talk like Rap lyrics.
    According to witnesses someone at the party said both that night.
    Source?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#337)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:20:00 PM EST
    You're right Durga, you didn't utter those magic words so you can't be racist. Only explicitly racist remarks will do. Now, you can feel good about yourself again because you are not a racist. Good night.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#338)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:22:34 PM EST
    Court TV "journalist" Beth Karras said DNA was found underneath a fingernail. It was consistent with David Evans.
    Too bad for Nifong that he lived at the residence. Too bad the nail was found in his trashcan. Too bad he may have handled the nail himself before it was turned over to police. Too bad this profile matched 14 other people in a database of 3,000 (3,000 whites?). DNA is normally accurate to 1 in 500,000,000. Too bad it may be consistent with another Lacrosse player or maybe this genetic mixture fingers another Lacrosse player that could testify that the AV never scratched him. And has Beth actually viewed the DA report for herself like Dan has, or is she just repeating prosecution spin from the press? imho, where's the DNA from the accused who DID NOT live at the house?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#339)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:28:07 PM EST
    Madison:
    I will postulate that these meetings included questions like, "WELL, WHO THE H*LL'S F***ING DNA IS IT?!?" Just a thought.
    Nifong did claim there was no work product from the meetings to turn over to defense. Wasn't the accuser present at this meeting? She told the medical professionals treating her at Duke that she didn't have consensual sex in the last week (Isn't that one of the questions on the SANE report?). It was only AFTER the DNA (most particularly the sample of semen retrieved from the exam) came back with NO DIRECT LINK to any of the team members that they tested three additional people, her "boyfriend" and two "drivers." I think you're a lot closer than you realize. Your extra sensory perception is spooky.....

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#340)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:33:12 PM EST
    Forgot to mention, TOO BAD THERE EXISTS A PHOTO OF KIM PERFORMING WITHOUT AT LEAST TWO OF HER RIGHT HAND FAKE FINGERNAILS. Are those missing fingernails the same ones she claimed were ripped off during a scratch? I think so. I think she took those fingernails off in the bathroom before the "show" even began, not during a rape.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#341)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:35:13 PM EST
    bazza says:
    Forgot to mention, TOO BAD THERE EXISTS A PHOTO OF KIM PERFORMING WITHOUT AT LEAST TWO OF HER RIGHT HAND FAKE FINGERNAILS.
    Hmmm, do you mean Kim or the AV?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#342)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 04:37:24 PM EST
    Whoops. I meant the AV.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#343)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:00:26 PM EST
    I'll ask again, because people want to know. What was Bissey talking about describing the AV wearing a short skirt? Was he too busy watching how straight she was walking to not notice the lingerie?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#344)
    by ding7777 on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:06:34 PM EST
    from one of the earlier hearings:
    NIFONG: It [cell phone belonging to Precious] was -- it was found outside the next day by the boys. They brought it inside. And the cops showed up with a search warrant. They said, look, we found this outside. Her purse as well. And then, of course, led them to, you know, fingernails they'd thrown in the trash can.
    How does Nifong know the boys threw the fingernails into the trash can?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#345)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:12:18 PM EST
    ding7777 posted:
    from one of the earlier hearings:
    NIFONG: It [cell phone belonging to Precious] was -- it was found outside the next day by the boys. They brought it inside. And the cops showed up with a search warrant. They said, look, we found this outside. Her purse as well. And then, of course, led them to, you know, fingernails they'd thrown in the trash can.
    How does Nifong know the boys threw the fingernails into the trash can?
    That is an error. Osborn said that.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#346)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:18:45 PM EST
    mik, Nifong claimed EVERYTHING was privileged attorney work product and for that reason he was required to turn over nothing. And the judge agreed. Cheshire maintained that some of the conversation would not have been protected under the work product doctrine because some parts of the conversation would have to be the kind of conversation Madison suggested. Cheshire was given short shrift by the judge. The judge took Nifong's legal representations at face value, i.e., everything is work product that Nifong says is work product. The judge wasn't willing to have any in camera review of the Nifong meeting notes to see whether Nifong was correct or Cheshire was correct. I hope this clears this up. Shameful.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#347)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:18:51 PM EST
    Read the story about the two million offered to the AV. I noticed that the article wasn't an attempt to even-handedly discuss the case. That is, there was nothing about any of the evidence coming out through discovery, just characterized as defense spinning and angry bloggers. I think that their readership might be better served with more information. Also, I wonder how come no one else has picked up the story. Names? dates? I also wonder how Cousin Jakki's story dovetails with the parents reporting that their daughter is missing and not keeping in touch.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#348)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:21:15 PM EST
    barry posted:
    imho, where's the DNA from the accused who DID NOT live at the house?
    My point was how does the "journalist" know it was underneath the nail? The defense attorneys haven't shown reporters (other than Abrams - and he's not talking) the DNA results. I don't know about her use of the word consistent for the partial DNA match. It was also inconsistent. I was criticizing the media coverage of this case.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#349)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:21:51 PM EST
    imho, you said, in part:
    According to witnesses someone at the party said both that night.
    Is there anyone, other than the AV or Kim, who heard the n***** word?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#350)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:25:22 PM EST
    imho posted:
    According to witnesses someone at the party said both that night.
    beenaround posted:
    Source?
    Ms. Pittman and Mr. Bissey.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#351)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:29:29 PM EST
    The nails are a non-issue for a whole host of reasons which have been discussed here before. The pictures show the dancer missing the stick on nails when she did her dance. They didn't come off in any attack unless the attack happened before the dance, which no one is saying. Maybe the nails found were spares, who knows. The point is that there is no evidence of any scratching of players that would cause the nails to come off. The only relevance of the nails is relative to the probabilistic determination of the odds of Precious picking the guy out of a line-up that the police had "something" on, no matter how insignificant.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#352)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:30:02 PM EST
    IMHO says:
    beenaround posted:
    Source?
    Ms. Pittman and Mr. Bissey.
    Well, that is interesting because Bissey's Affadavit does not mention the N word as far as I can recall. Perhaps you can quote where Bissey says that?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#353)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:30:48 PM EST
    SharonInJax posted:
    imho, you said, in part:
    According to witnesses someone at the party said both that night.
    Is there anyone, other than the AV or Kim, who heard the n***** word?
    I haven't seen the players' statements yet, but I would guess, yes, there are more than just those two witnesses that heard the word n!gger hollered.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#354)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:33:56 PM EST
    Newport: Absent a demonstrable showing of bad faith, I don't know of any judge who would not simply trust an "officer of the court" when he puts his a** on the line about work product. "Defense spin" is such an overused expression, and it neglects to address prosecutors using the "work product" excuse for not turning things over. I don't fault Stephens for this decision. A couple of points: 1. Was I the only one who noticed Stephens cautioning Nifong about his smirk-laden comments about the defense attorneys' familiarity with rape cases? (BTW, when was the last time that Nifong prosecuted a rape case?) I found it to be notable because I saw it as the judge saying to Nifong: "cut the crap, Mike." 2. Stephens did reduce Seligman's bond. Expect the State of North Carolina to lose the financial benefit of having $900,000 of the defendants' money to play with before trial, because the other defendants will be filing similar motions. Finnerty might have a bit of a problem, due to the DC case, but I'm not sure. Again, I do not know how NC law works, but speaking generally, a judge rarely reduces an already posted bond. That happens, usually, when the judge who is making the determination begins to have doubts about the guilt or convictability of a defendant.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#355)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:34:53 PM EST
    At the request of Seligmann's attorney, Kirk Osborn, Stephens ordered Nifong to turn over to a judge for review the accuser's hospital records from June 1993, when she said she was raped in nearby Creedmoor. The woman didn't file a police report until three years later and no charges were ever brought. Nifong told Stephens he's not sure if such records even exist. How does a 14 year-old go to a hospital after she was gang raped and the facility not notify the authorities? There are a couple of reasons why the records may not exist, and one solid one is that she wasn't raped and didn't show up to the hospital.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#356)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:35:09 PM EST
    imho: when did Bissey ever say he heard the "n word"?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#357)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:35:27 PM EST
    barry:
    Too bad this profile matched 14 other people in a database of 3,000 (3,000 whites?).
    Interesting question, barry. If the database is statistically analagous with the local population, you would expect roughly 25% of the samples to be from white males. I wonder if the DNA samples were sufficient to identify sex or race.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#358)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:36:14 PM EST
    imho:
    but I would guess
    doesn't cut it.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#359)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:37:50 PM EST
    Sharon,
    Newport: Absent a demonstrable showing of bad faith, I don't know of any judge who would not simply trust an "officer of the court" when he puts his a** on the line about work product.
    He should have made him produce some kind of log documenting what he was claiming was work product and produced it to the other side. That way Nifong's representations could have been tested. In civil litigation, no one is ever required to accept an "officer of the court's word." The Federal Rules of Evidence are very specific on this. Why should a prosecutor be treated differently. Is his word somehow better than any other practicing lawyer? Obviously not with the rampant prosecutorial misconduct that this country is witnessing.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#360)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:39:04 PM EST
    You're right Durga, you didn't utter those magic words so you can't be racist.
    Ummm, no. That is your own little straw-man. I've been trying to get you to show where I've been racist for a while now. Once more, with feeling... What words? It'll have to explain how can you possibly say addressing a few men on one team at one school in one city in one state in one country on one continent could somehow amount to all white men. So what was I said about those men that showed I was racist?
    Only explicitly racist remarks will do. Now, you can feel good about yourself again because you are not a racist.
    Try again. I didn't say any type of words indeed (which, is what you brought up ... after you decided you weren't going to respond further), but you're going to have to show how calling them out on their own behavior is racist. The only way I can think of is if you tried to say I held all white men accountable for what they did (which wouldn't work, 'cause I didn't) since you didn't have any response to the fact that I didn't minimize the strippers' behavior while not the players' ... or are you going to come up with something different now? Pray-tell what you'll pull out of your rear-end next so I can know what it was that I said that shows me being racist. What was it imho said hat shows him/her hating men/being racist? Still waiting for that.
    Good night.
    'Night!
    Forgot to mention, TOO BAD THERE EXISTS A PHOTO OF KIM (he probably means the AV) PERFORMING WITHOUT AT LEAST TWO OF HER RIGHT HAND FAKE FINGERNAILS.
    A photo exists of that like the photos exist showing clear bleeding, lacerations / bruising on the AV when she arrived? Or does a photo exist of the AV performing without 2 of her fingernails and they found more than that in the trash can?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#361)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:39:30 PM EST
    Or, Bob, the AV told the cop a lie, and she did not, in fact, go to a hospital following the alleged Creedmore attack. Said cop repeated the lie, and it is now "in an official court document." BS

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#362)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:41:42 PM EST
    More from WRAL's story on the hearing today: Defense attorneys now have about 1,800 pages of documents, including police reports, investigators' notes and lineup reports -- all of which they have said contains nothing that will hurt their case. Attorney Joe Cheshire, who represents Evans, said it also shows that the accuser changed her story many times in the hours after the alleged attack. "She said, at one point, that she was raped by five people," Cheshire said. "So, we now have another number. You know, we have three, we got none, we got five, we got three, we got five, we got 20. I mean, pick a number."

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#363)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:44:50 PM EST
    Why weren't those papers turned over before then? Did he just get them? Maybe police who waited months to write their reports. It's possible I suppose.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#364)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:47:12 PM EST
    Sharon, I am becoming more and more convinced that the Creedmore rape never occurred. The father said it didn't happen. It would have been impossible for a 14 year-old girl who had been gang raped to have continuing psychiatric treatment and emergency room treatment following a gang rape without the police having been notified.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#365)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:48:07 PM EST
    Sharon, Should have said Federal Rules of Civil Procedure which details what one must do when making a claim of work product, i.e., make a log and produce it.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#366)
    by Bob In Pacifica on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:50:38 PM EST
    Sharon, more to the point, the AV changes stories like changing clothes. No easier. She will be the ultimate defense witness because she is going to have to explain herself. Some liars are so bold that they come off convincing, and there may be some of that with the AV, but I would guess that there's just too much for her to explain away. I see the 20 rapists story is back in play. Does anyone remember who she told regarding the five rapists?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#367)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:51:12 PM EST
    With regard to all the multiples of the number of men involved, it's real funny when the Duke officer overheard the 20 men report that the Durham City Manager launched an investigation and determined that no one is aware of any such inconsistency. Who did he talk to Himan? Nifong? Real thorough investigation. The Duke cop was just reporting what the Durham cops were saying.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#368)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:52:44 PM EST
    My point was how does the "journalist" know it was underneath the nail?
    Even if it was "under" (like where, on the sticky, adhesive coating?), it doesn't prove a scratch. There's a 50/50 chance that contamination could happen under the fingernail. Further, there should be DNA of Evans on the other fingernails if all four came off in a scratch. Four chances to snagg a full profile and this is all we get, a very weak partial profile. That whatever was found was so weak also indicates a contamination. Just one skin cell can yeild a full profile from what I've read.
    The defense attorneys haven't shown reporters (other than Abrams - and he's not talking) the DNA results.
    Abrams has said "on" but of course that's vague when applied to a fingernail. But judging from what Abrams has said, I don't think the DNA report ever used the word under or underneath. I think Dan would have noted that, if it did. But "on" could mean "under" too I think. If under, where under? The tip under, or way in the back?
    I don't know about her use of the word consistent for the partial DNA match. It was also inconsistent.
    Part of this profile was consistent with Dave Evans, but whether or not the rest was we will never know for sure.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#369)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 05:59:26 PM EST
    SharonInJax posted:
    doesn't cut it
    I was guessing about the extra witnesses. There are two witness who told police they were called n!ggers and if the players that are going to be Evans' witnesses deny hearing that, it could be a credibility issue. I think the cotton shirt remark is worse than the n!gger hollering. SharonInJax posted:
    imho: when did Bissey ever say he heard the "n word"?
    He heard the b!tch word. He may have heard more:
    "There were no kind words of the things I heard that were directed at the girls," said neighbor Jason Bissey.


    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#370)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:02:00 PM EST
    barry posted:
    Abrams has said "on" but of course that's vague when applied to a fingernail. But judging from what Abrams has said, I don't think the DNA report ever used the word under or underneath. I think Dan would have noted that, if it did. But "on" could mean "under" too I think. If under, where under? The tip under, or way in the back?
    It is an important question. Why didn't Abrams tell us the answer? Are they through with the 1300 pages of discovery leakage?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#371)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:04:54 PM EST
    With regard to all the multiples of the number of men involved, it's real funny when the Duke officer overheard the 20 men report that the Durham City Manager launched an investigation and determined that no one is aware of any such inconsistency. Who did he talk to Himan? Nifong? Real thorough investigation. The Duke cop was just reporting what the Durham cops were saying.
    Cheshire saying that version is included in the discovery?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#372)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:07:55 PM EST
    It is an important question. Why didn't Abrams tell us the answer?
    The DNA report may not say at all, or by saying "on" Dan thinks that should be enough. He seems to think "on" a fingernail means the same thing as "on" a desk. Too bad no one has bothered to ask him what "on" actually means here, not even Georgia Goslee.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#373)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:09:36 PM EST
    20 men, 5 men, 3 men, 2 men, 0 men, what difference does it make? How could anyone saying these things be believed about anything? Trauma? I guess small details like the number of attackers are unimportant. Only the final scrubbed Nifong/FA statement matters. Everything prior to that defining moment can just be chaulked up to trauma, or misremembering. What about the lack of anal trauma and K-Y jelly residue and fecal matter and other stuff. Nifong will say well I'm not trying to prove anal rape just vaginal rape. The story will morp into whatever Nifong wants and that is shameful.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#374)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:11:16 PM EST
    Cheshire saying that version is included in the discovery?
    He basically implied that. He made this claim right in the cortroom today.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#375)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:13:38 PM EST
    Nifong is approaching this case like a civil litigator, just win baby, on whatever set of facts works.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#376)
    by inmyhumbleopinion on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:17:23 PM EST
    Sharon posted:
    I saw it as the judge saying to Nifong: "cut the crap, Mike."
    It was more like: now we don't have to get into who knows what and who doesn't. Did he sound angry or annoyed to you Sharon?

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#377)
    by weezie on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:18:32 PM EST
    For the love of Mike (NOT Nifong,) reading that ridiculous line, "Sweetheart, you aren't going anywhere..." over and over again is making me feel like kicking somebody in the butt, too.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#378)
    by barry on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:19:31 PM EST
    Newport, The worst part is that no one corroberates the "dramatic separation" that led to the "rape". Before that information became public, I still thought that there was a slight, *very* slight possibility that she was telling the truth. But Kim Pittman confirmed that it was all a lie when she tried and failed to corroberate the accuser's story. This meant that she did not witness what the AV alleged in her statements to police, and this event was a key part of her tale. If that's not true, then the rest is not true either.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#379)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:20:58 PM EST
    No, he sounding condescending like the small man that he is. All idiot's like Nifong do that.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#380)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:22:31 PM EST
    New thread on today's hearing is here. Comments are closing on this one.

    Re: Duke Lacrosse Open Thread (none / 0) (#381)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Jun 22, 2006 at 06:22:46 PM EST
    Barry, that is indeed the most important lack of corroboration that is apparent.