Kobe accuser's past may be barred from court
Howard Pankratz
Denver Post
Jul. 21, 2003 04:52 PM
A Colorado jury may never hear allegations that a woman allegedly sexually assaulted by basketball star Kobe Bryant overdosed two months before the alleged assault at a posh hotel and spa, lawyers said Monday.
The Orange County Register reported Sunday that the alleged 19-year-old victim became distraught after learning that her high school sweetheart was dating another woman and a close friend was killed in an truck accident.
The Register reported that the woman was found incoherent, lethargic and seemingly drunk when she was found in her home by a friend and rushed to the hospital.
But lawyers said Monday that a Colorado judge, following a pattern of protecting sex assault victims that has developed in the past three decades, may find that the incident has no relevance to the assault allegation made by the woman.
The 19-year-old college student claims that Bryant attacked her on the night of June 30 at The Lodge & Spa at Cordillera in the Colorado mountain community of Edwards, where she works.
Defense lawyer Bob Ransome said that under some conditions a judge might allow the information in.
But Ransome said it will probably be tough going for the defense to convince a judge that there is a good reason to allow it at trial.
"There are simply no rules on that. That is simply a discretionary thing with the judge," Ransome said. "I will tell you one thing - victims are really protected by the courts, almost over-protected. In my opinion, the defense has an uphill battle to get that in."
Former Denver prosecutor Karen Steinhauser, now a visiting professor at the University of Denver Law School, said defense lawyers might try to introduce the overdose incident as in some way affecting the credibility of the alleged victim.
But Steinhauser said she doesn't believe the incident, if true, affects the alleged victim's credibility or what occurred on June 30.
"I don't believe because someone has gone through a bad time and may have taken an overdose that it now means we have to question their ability to tell the truth," Steinhauser said.
And Peter Weir, executive director of the Colorado District Attorneys' Council , said that under Colorado law, before defense lawyers can admit evidence in any kind of case they must show that the relevance of the evidence outweighs any prejudicial value.
"In other words, it just can't be character assassination," Weir said.
"They've got to be able to show some nexus to the case at hand and why it is important to put that information before the jury - whether previous sexual conduct, previous mental health history, drug use or whatever."
However, Larry Pozner, a Denver-based lawyer and former president of the National Association of criminal Defense Lawyers , said the overdosing allegation should be admitted at trial because it goes to the credibility and mental stability of the woman.
"A physically healthy 19-year-old who overdoses either is irrational - she has lost touch with reality - or if it is a cry for help, it is an absolute stunning cry for attention," Pozner said.
Pozner said that the reports of the overdosing are a body blow to the prosecution's case against Bryant.
"This is very bad stuff for the prosecution. This is the last thing they needed. This is devastating," Pozner said.
He said juries want to know everything about the person making the allegation against Bryant and are asking her why should they should believe her.
The actions of the woman when confronted with stressful situations indicates she reacts in unusual ways, Pozner said.
"If it was a fake suicide attempt, it is the ultimate attention-getting device," the lawyer said. "If it wasn't an attention-getting device...how disturbed is she? It's a sign of irrational behavior and a break with reality. That is admissible when you ask a jury to believe this woman's testimony beyond a reasonable doubt."
Both Pozner and Ransome noted that the woman auditioned for the TV-reality show, "American Idol".
"That says a whole bunch, if true," Ransome said. "If a victim in this type of case had a propensity to be seeking publicity, that would be something very, very important to me as a defense attorney," Ransome said. "It is a possibility that this person was seeking the limelight and may find any way that she can to become a public persona. To me, it casts a shadow on the government's case, if it is true."
http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/0721kobe-shield21-ON.html
