After what seems like eons to those who have followed this tawdry case from its beginnings, the decision yesterday of the North Carolina State Bar to strip soon-to-be former Durham County District Attorney Mike Nifong of his law license seems almost anti-climatic. It was a rough week for everyone involved last week...including those once accused of the crimes Nifong wrongfully pursued them of, who testified on the stand against him...and culminated in Nifong surprisingly resigning from office on the last day of his self-defense.
The decision laid down by the panel overseeing the ethics charges came down harshly and sternly on Nifong. They essentially called him a liar throughout their final judgment. You can read the highlights of what rule violations had been brought...and Nifong was convicted of 27 of the 32 of them...here. To the surprise of some, Nifong's attorney stated Saturday that his client would not appeal the decision of the panel. (WRAL-TV has done a superb job in covering many angles of the trial, and has several videos of testimony within that coverage here.) Lord only knows where this leaves the state of justice within Durham County now.
All of this brings us to the next phase of this saga (oh no, we're not done yet, folks)...who pays for how much of this, to whom, and how much money, all told, will actually change hands in the end. The dollars and cents battle is just beginning. Breitbart is reporting today that Nifong's future is dim, and that also his material possessions and wealth may be few. Will the civil (and perhaps even criminal) charges to be brought stop with Nifong, or perhaps spread also to the Durham Police Department, the County of Durham itself, maybe even back to Duke University?? Blame, and how much that blame should be, is just now starting to get assigned to the guilty party(ies). Time...and somebody's wallet...will surely tell.
UPDATE June 18: Well...and this isn't all that surprising...you take Duke University off the future docket in civil court in regards to this case. From local Durham TV station WTVD: "Duke, Exonerated Lacrosse Players Reach Settlement" (complete with video). So that leaves Nifong, Durham County and maybe the Durham Police Department still in the line of fire, eh?
Showing posts with label Mike Nifong. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mike Nifong. Show all posts
11 April 2007
Somewhere civil attorneys are penning their letters, on behalf of the players...
It's official.
At a little past 2:30pm today (EST), NC Attorney General Roy Cooper dropped all remaining charges against the 3 accused men of the Duke University Lacrosse team. At a little past 3pm today, news outlets all over the Net and elsewhere were devouring the finer details of this mess of a prosecution...and taking full aim at the accuser. Now fully named in numerous outlets (including a front page headline on The Drudge Report), and complete with her old mug shots accompanying the copy in some, it's open season in the print today. For the former accuser's sake, I hope she does have some familial and mental help available, as it's clear that the media sharks are out for blood to such a degree it would weaken the strongest of spirits. Even the relatively even-handed local News & Observer paper is running multiple stories on today's developments, and have teased with not only one but two in-depth follow-ups about the former accuser and DA Nifong (and Nifong's will be a 5 part series, no less). Yes, we have resuscitated our own soap opera.
It's also with some amusement and chagrin that I keep reading how this dismissal leads to an 'end' of this whole controversy. Oh, no, folks...we're just getting started, unfortunately. There's going to be a lot of name-calling and finger-pointing...and Lord knows how many civil suits...before this story finally 'ends'. With any luck, we might even make it someday as a 'Movie of the Week' on one of the cable TV channels. (Tongue firmly planted in cheek, folks.) No matter how the final chapter is written, though, it will be years down the road...and it will have to be written by the community left behind itself...after all the hoopla and analysis has faded away, after the satellite trucks have moved on to another town's tragedy, after some more money is made at someone else's painful expense. Now the hard work begins here: preventing this from ever happening in our judicial system again. And that work should not...and cannot...be dismissed.
From MSNBC (via the Associated Press), the official statement from AG Cooper.
And, if I were Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong and his counsel, I would be feeling in a very precarious position tonight, indeed...as he well should be. I was personally taken aback by how stinging AG Cooper was of Nifong and that simply cannot bode well, even though Cooper tried to sound relatively impartial during the question and answer session that followed the above statement. Nifong has went from a relative unknown to one of the most-reviled men in the state, if not the nation at large. In June, we'll find out what the North Carolina Bar Association rules about Nifong and his ethics and practices in dealing with this case.
Time will tell, though, also just how much rope Duke University will be given by the now totally-free men and their families...bettors around here are allowing just enough for a public relations (and bank account) hanging. Evans/Finnerty/Seligmann Fieldhouse anyone? Or perhaps several fully-endowed scholarships in Criminal Law at the Duke University Law School? Or perhaps a whole new major, with an emphasis in Criminal Science Investigation? If Duke University gets away 'clean' on this (in light of everything, good and bad), it will have to consider itself very lucky indeed. Though I'm not sure it deserves that blessing.
Who knows, maybe the defendants are changing. But something tells me that maybe Justice still has some distance to go.
At a little past 2:30pm today (EST), NC Attorney General Roy Cooper dropped all remaining charges against the 3 accused men of the Duke University Lacrosse team. At a little past 3pm today, news outlets all over the Net and elsewhere were devouring the finer details of this mess of a prosecution...and taking full aim at the accuser. Now fully named in numerous outlets (including a front page headline on The Drudge Report), and complete with her old mug shots accompanying the copy in some, it's open season in the print today. For the former accuser's sake, I hope she does have some familial and mental help available, as it's clear that the media sharks are out for blood to such a degree it would weaken the strongest of spirits. Even the relatively even-handed local News & Observer paper is running multiple stories on today's developments, and have teased with not only one but two in-depth follow-ups about the former accuser and DA Nifong (and Nifong's will be a 5 part series, no less). Yes, we have resuscitated our own soap opera.
It's also with some amusement and chagrin that I keep reading how this dismissal leads to an 'end' of this whole controversy. Oh, no, folks...we're just getting started, unfortunately. There's going to be a lot of name-calling and finger-pointing...and Lord knows how many civil suits...before this story finally 'ends'. With any luck, we might even make it someday as a 'Movie of the Week' on one of the cable TV channels. (Tongue firmly planted in cheek, folks.) No matter how the final chapter is written, though, it will be years down the road...and it will have to be written by the community left behind itself...after all the hoopla and analysis has faded away, after the satellite trucks have moved on to another town's tragedy, after some more money is made at someone else's painful expense. Now the hard work begins here: preventing this from ever happening in our judicial system again. And that work should not...and cannot...be dismissed.
From MSNBC (via the Associated Press), the official statement from AG Cooper.
And, if I were Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong and his counsel, I would be feeling in a very precarious position tonight, indeed...as he well should be. I was personally taken aback by how stinging AG Cooper was of Nifong and that simply cannot bode well, even though Cooper tried to sound relatively impartial during the question and answer session that followed the above statement. Nifong has went from a relative unknown to one of the most-reviled men in the state, if not the nation at large. In June, we'll find out what the North Carolina Bar Association rules about Nifong and his ethics and practices in dealing with this case.
Time will tell, though, also just how much rope Duke University will be given by the now totally-free men and their families...bettors around here are allowing just enough for a public relations (and bank account) hanging. Evans/Finnerty/Seligmann Fieldhouse anyone? Or perhaps several fully-endowed scholarships in Criminal Law at the Duke University Law School? Or perhaps a whole new major, with an emphasis in Criminal Science Investigation? If Duke University gets away 'clean' on this (in light of everything, good and bad), it will have to consider itself very lucky indeed. Though I'm not sure it deserves that blessing.
Who knows, maybe the defendants are changing. But something tells me that maybe Justice still has some distance to go.
10 April 2007
Gathering Storm of Charges Being Dismissed? UPDATED
A quick post this evening, as I'm sure there will be more to come on this over the next few days if the rumours hold true...
Rumours abound (both in the local and national media) that tomorrow will bring the end of the 're-investigation' of the sexual assault and kidnapping charges still being held in place (as of tonight, anyway) against 3 former Duke University lacrosse team members. The charges, which until last December also included rape, are the result of a year-long controversial (and some would label clear fiasco) investigation of the alleged crime. (A whole lengthy list of articles on this case can be found here, with the most recent articles near the top.) This challenged investigation has included everything from multiple DNA tests, constantly changing witness and victim accounts of events, questionable legal and lab practices, and the recusal in January of the original District Attorney, Mike Nifong, in light of ethics charges related to his alleged withholding evidence in the case. God knows no one here wants any more of a rush to judgment for any of those involved, but frankly, the State investigators called in to 're-cover and re-evaluate' everything cannot work fast enough to many following the case.
This whole ugly affair...no matter if tomorrow sees the charges dropped, modified, or held in place...has put a black eye on local and University community relations, an unfortunate event fueled by a sensation story-seeking national (and even international) media and the sheer reversal of all the evidence and statements first presented for indictment. Race, economics, gender, 'questionable practices' of all involved, politics...it's been brutal to those of us who live here. I can only hope that no matter what is resolved, no matter when, that when the dust all settles we taxpayers and local residents can have a final investigation for which we can have some faith and pride. Perhaps after that is accomplished, we can somehow figure how to mend our many frayed and raw edges. Until then, folks, say a prayer for us and try not to judge us too harshly for this legal nightmare...it is not standard practice. Or at least I sure as hell hope not.
Lord only knows what still awaits us. Stay tuned.
From recent reports:
The News and Observer (Raleigh, NC): "Former lacrosse players returning"
NBC-17 TV (WNCN, Raleigh, NC): "Development Expected in Duke LAX case" (complete with video)
Also an update from The Smoking Gun (Jan 24, 2007): "New Ethics Charges for Nifong"
UPDATE April 11, 2:36am: The Drudge Report is reporting (via ABC News) that all charges against the 3 male defendants will be dropped.
Rumours abound (both in the local and national media) that tomorrow will bring the end of the 're-investigation' of the sexual assault and kidnapping charges still being held in place (as of tonight, anyway) against 3 former Duke University lacrosse team members. The charges, which until last December also included rape, are the result of a year-long controversial (and some would label clear fiasco) investigation of the alleged crime. (A whole lengthy list of articles on this case can be found here, with the most recent articles near the top.) This challenged investigation has included everything from multiple DNA tests, constantly changing witness and victim accounts of events, questionable legal and lab practices, and the recusal in January of the original District Attorney, Mike Nifong, in light of ethics charges related to his alleged withholding evidence in the case. God knows no one here wants any more of a rush to judgment for any of those involved, but frankly, the State investigators called in to 're-cover and re-evaluate' everything cannot work fast enough to many following the case.
This whole ugly affair...no matter if tomorrow sees the charges dropped, modified, or held in place...has put a black eye on local and University community relations, an unfortunate event fueled by a sensation story-seeking national (and even international) media and the sheer reversal of all the evidence and statements first presented for indictment. Race, economics, gender, 'questionable practices' of all involved, politics...it's been brutal to those of us who live here. I can only hope that no matter what is resolved, no matter when, that when the dust all settles we taxpayers and local residents can have a final investigation for which we can have some faith and pride. Perhaps after that is accomplished, we can somehow figure how to mend our many frayed and raw edges. Until then, folks, say a prayer for us and try not to judge us too harshly for this legal nightmare...it is not standard practice. Or at least I sure as hell hope not.
Lord only knows what still awaits us. Stay tuned.
From recent reports:
UPDATE April 11, 2:36am: The Drudge Report is reporting (via ABC News) that all charges against the 3 male defendants will be dropped.
14 January 2007
At last, some movement (possibly forward) on the alleged Duke rape case
It's been a whirlwind of activity since I last updated (December 15, 2006) on the status of the alleged Duke lacrosse rape case. In that time, we've had (and these are not in order, folks, it's been busy):
the birth of the accuser's child (a healthy girl, a bit premature as she was due in February);
the quiet, and secretly held, swearing-in of Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong on January 2nd for his current, and hotly controversial, term;
the court-ordered paternity tests of said child with the 3 men accused (whose results are not known publicly yet, but both sides involve all agree none of the accused could be the father...so I'm surmising that we taxpayers paid for this to help the accuser in some fashion with the identity and to prove once and for all the accused could not be responsible, in case this comes into question later?);
a public statement from the North Carolina Conference of District Attorneys asking for Nifong step aside and recuse himself from the case (ed: a flash copy of the actual document);
an interview in a major magazine, Newsweek, with one of the defendants, Reade Seligmann, about how he's coping...the first such interview really granted with any of the accused;
the North Carolina State Bar filing ethics charges against Nifong (ed: an audio file from NPR's "All Things Considered" program);
the invitation to return to school from Duke President Richard Broadhead to defendant Seligmann and co-defendant Colin Finnerty (both of whom were suspended indefinitely when the charges were filed back last spring); which prompted...
a Duke faculty member to resign all her Duke committee work in protest, in response to having Seligmann and Finnerty be invited to return before all charges are settled...and there has been a lot of emails flying between the Duke "Group of 88" staff and the local, national, and international community;
which ALL of the above was caused by, happened simultaneously, or barely preceded...
Nifong dropping the rape charges against the 3 men, but keeping the sexual assault and kidnapping charges, after the accuser changed her story...again;
which the above 'new' version has either morphed or more details are leaking out from the December 21, 2006, re-interview with the accuser: now, Seligmann, didn't participate in any sexual acts, a previously unmentioned 'white towel' makes its appearance, and the time line of the alleged attack has moved forward.
For the sake of all readers, I won't go into my whole diatribe about the timeline...a diatribe I've harped on and off ever since the case first broke in March. Suffice it to say, excluding all other evidence, I have yet to see an explanation for why the two women (regardless of the actual time of the alleged attack, how many players were supposedly involved, etc) would leave the scene on Buchanan Boulevard and drive all the way to the Kroger on Hillsborough Street, and right past Duke University Medical Center. DUMC, which is much shorter in distance (5 minutes, 1.9 miles), would naturally have been able to give immediate medical treatment to the accuser...no matter what condition she was in. Or, God forbid, the Durham Police Department, (3 minutes, less than 1 mile away from the scene of the crime)...the second dancer had already called in a '911' call anyway in regards to hearing racial epithets...again, much shorter than an understaffed 24 hour Kroger store off I-85 (6 minutes, 2.2 miles...and past DUMC). I used to live near that Kroger, and while the employees there are a wonderful group of people even in the dead of night, they're so busy on the inside (and frequentially understaffed stocking the aisles or trying to run out shoplifters), it's still not a place you'd go to if you needed immediate help following an attack. And let's not even get me going about the timeline with all the 911 calls...
To catch up all the late comers to this saga, here's a fairly good timeline of events, as they're known to the public so far.
Now that we're all caught up, let's add two new events from the last 3 days:
DA Nifong has asked to be recused from the case due to conflict of interest stemming from the ethics charges he is facing;
And, yesterday...
State Attorney General Roy Cooper's office has taken over the Duke case, and he's appointing two special prosecutors to see just how warped the whole case has become.
I'm not sure all of this is good news; I'm not sure any of this is bad news, either. I do, however, feel some relief that some fresh (and hopefully competent) eyes will re-examine this whole endeavour and do something that makes sense to the NC taxpayers (such as myself) paying for it. If the woman is a victim, her case deserves a much better treatment than it's been given (although I suspect the case is long lost no matter what the final decision on the guilt of this is handed down). If the accused men are innocent, they deserve whatever justice they can muster from our system for malicious prosecution at the minimum. (I'm not sure how gung-ho the players, if proven innocent, would want to go against Duke, but there are some arguments that Duke University could be/should be in the crosshairs next...after Nifong...for not handling this situation well at all.) No matter who wins, though, we all here locally have lost from all the negative publicity: I'd just like to get to a 'logical' conclusion to this whole circus so I can sleep a little better at night.
And, speaking of circuses, did I mention that:
"60 Minutes" will be covering the story tonight (Sunday, January 14, 8pm EST), and including interviews with the lacrosse players' families? (Some local blogger friends here heard about this on Wednesday and then Nifong asked to be recused on Friday, and these bloggers do not think the two items are concidential.) This should be a corker, and, if keeping up momentum, should provide some more new information.
And...
Paula Zahn from CNN will be broadcasting also on this case...but including the ever-popular race relations angle, of course...live this upcoming Tuesday, January 16, from here, too? (ed: The CNN TV commericals say it's Tuesday, her web page linked above says Friday...I'll update when I get clarification. I may attempt to go, for no other reason than to hear the debate. It's a shame Miles O'Brien couldn't cover this instead, as he seems to be a far better moderator than Paula. In a perfect world, old CNN alum Aaron Brown would be handling this, but CNN wasted his wonderful talent in favour of glamboy Anderson Cooper. I love Keith Olbermann over on "Countdown" on MSNBC...I think he's got the lion's share of Aaron's old viewers and he's an equal to Brown in his writing, which is really saying something...but I desperately miss watching Aaron.)
I'm sure that there will plenty of news...again...on this tonight. "Film at 11."
which ALL of the above was caused by, happened simultaneously, or barely preceded...
For the sake of all readers, I won't go into my whole diatribe about the timeline...a diatribe I've harped on and off ever since the case first broke in March. Suffice it to say, excluding all other evidence, I have yet to see an explanation for why the two women (regardless of the actual time of the alleged attack, how many players were supposedly involved, etc) would leave the scene on Buchanan Boulevard and drive all the way to the Kroger on Hillsborough Street, and right past Duke University Medical Center. DUMC, which is much shorter in distance (5 minutes, 1.9 miles), would naturally have been able to give immediate medical treatment to the accuser...no matter what condition she was in. Or, God forbid, the Durham Police Department, (3 minutes, less than 1 mile away from the scene of the crime)...the second dancer had already called in a '911' call anyway in regards to hearing racial epithets...again, much shorter than an understaffed 24 hour Kroger store off I-85 (6 minutes, 2.2 miles...and past DUMC). I used to live near that Kroger, and while the employees there are a wonderful group of people even in the dead of night, they're so busy on the inside (and frequentially understaffed stocking the aisles or trying to run out shoplifters), it's still not a place you'd go to if you needed immediate help following an attack. And let's not even get me going about the timeline with all the 911 calls...
To catch up all the late comers to this saga, here's a fairly good timeline of events, as they're known to the public so far.
Now that we're all caught up, let's add two new events from the last 3 days:
And, yesterday...
I'm not sure all of this is good news; I'm not sure any of this is bad news, either. I do, however, feel some relief that some fresh (and hopefully competent) eyes will re-examine this whole endeavour and do something that makes sense to the NC taxpayers (such as myself) paying for it. If the woman is a victim, her case deserves a much better treatment than it's been given (although I suspect the case is long lost no matter what the final decision on the guilt of this is handed down). If the accused men are innocent, they deserve whatever justice they can muster from our system for malicious prosecution at the minimum. (I'm not sure how gung-ho the players, if proven innocent, would want to go against Duke, but there are some arguments that Duke University could be/should be in the crosshairs next...after Nifong...for not handling this situation well at all.) No matter who wins, though, we all here locally have lost from all the negative publicity: I'd just like to get to a 'logical' conclusion to this whole circus so I can sleep a little better at night.
And, speaking of circuses, did I mention that:
And...
I'm sure that there will plenty of news...again...on this tonight. "Film at 11."
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