Bryant

Bryant's alleged victim subpoenaed

By Charlie Brennan, Rocky Mountain News
February 25, 2004

Kobe Bryant's alleged victim has been subpoenaed to appear next week at a pretrial hearing to determine whether evidence concerning her prior and subsequent sexual conduct should be heard at his rape trial.

But according to a source close to the case, it is likely there will be an attempt to quash the 19-year-old Eagle woman's subpoena, so that she would not have to testify.

"It doesn't surprise me," said Cynthia Stone, spokeswoman for the Colorado Coalition Against Sexual Assault, referring to the alleged victim's subpoena.

"With this defense team, it seems like a lot of the things they've been doing are trying to intimidate or break down this victim, piece by piece."

Pamela Mackey, an attorney for the Los Angeles Lakers star, would not confirm or deny that the Bryant defense had subpoenaed the alleged victim.

However, Mackey cited a passage in Colorado's rape shield law, which states that if an offer of proof has been submitted under seal to a judge - as Bryant's lawyers have done - and a judge agrees to such a hearing, "the court shall allow the questioning of the victim . . .."

"I don't know how that can be deemed harassment," said Mackey. "We're just following what the statute says."

Whether the alleged victim's subpoena is blocked or not, the public will not be hearing from her. District Judge Terry Ruckriegle ruled Tuesday that legal arguments over the relevance of the woman's other sexual activity will not take place in open court.

That raises the possibility that every issue at Bryant's hearing on Monday and Tuesday will be dealt with behind closed doors.

The sexual history of Bryant's alleged victim is important to the defense, because they allege that multiple sexual partners around the date of her June 30 encounter with Bryant could be the cause of injuries to her vaginal area. Prosecutors contend they were the result of forced penetration by Bryant.

Bryant has admitted having sexual contact with the woman during their encounter at the Lodge & Spa at Cordillera in Edwards - but claims it was consensual.

The greatest hurdle to Bryant's legal team, in seeking to use evidence concerning his alleged victim's other sexual conduct, is Colorado's rape shield law. That statute presumes such evidence to be inadmissible, unless it can be shown that it's directly relevant to the facts of the case at hand.

"For the defense to subpoena her to a hearing, to determine whether or not her prior or subsequent sex history is relevant, is perfectly appropriate," said Denver defense lawyer Craig Skinner.

"I believe that attempts to block her subpoena would fail, unless there is a compelling reason as to why she could not be there - and then I would imagine they would simply reschedule it, as opposed to not allowing her to be subpoenaed at all."

Dan Recht, past president of the Colorado Criminal Defense Bar, also said the Eagle woman's subpoena to next week's hearing was nothing unusual.

"Without knowing the grounds on which they subpoenaed her, I can't tell you the odds of her being forced to testify," said Recht. "But there certainly are circumstances under which some judges would force her to testify."

In addition to the hearing as to whether the alleged victim's other sexual conduct will be admissible at trial, two other issues are expected to be addressed Monday and Tuesday - also outside the presence of the press and public.

One more witness is scheduled to be called to complete a hearing into whether the young woman has implicitly waived her right to confidentiality on her medical history.

Also, further testimony will be held as to the admissibility of Bryant's statement to investigators.

Hearings on both those issues were initiated earlier this month.