The Denver Post
Bryant deposition in tussle
Tuesday, December 07, 2004 -
Lawyers for Kobe Bryant asked a judge on Monday to set ground rules for the questioning of the NBA star in a sex-assault lawsuit, including whether he must name every woman with whom he's had a sexual encounter.
The two sides negotiated their differences the past two weeks without resolution. Bryant had been scheduled to give a deposition today in California. Monday's request means the deposition will be postponed from two to four weeks, a source close to the case said. U.S. District Senior Judge Richard Matsch will give both sides time to file briefs on the motion. Based on the briefs, he can either rule from the bench or hold a hearing and then make his ruling. Bryant's lawyers said the request for the names of his sexual partners turns "a fishing expedition into a wholesale invasion of the most private human conduct." Bryant was charged with raping a woman in June 2003 in Eagle County. The criminal case fell apart when the woman said she did not want the case to go forward. One of her attorneys, L. Lin Wood of Atlanta, filed a civil lawsuit in federal court in Denver just before the criminal charges were dropped in August. Bryant's lawyers want just about everything sealed from the public, even the time, date and place of the depositions. "... Legitimate discovery in this case will require both Mr. Bryant and (his accuser) to disclose highly sensitive, confidential and private information about themselves, including the details of the sexual encounter that is at the core of this lawsuit," wrote one of Bryant's lawyers, Saskia Jordan. Wood doesn't want limitations placed on the depositions. "I have no intention of affording protection to Mr. Bryant simply because he is a famous and very wealthy NBA basketball player," Wood wrote. He also insists on the right to have his client present during Bryant's deposition. The Post is not printing her name because the newspaper's policy is to withhold names of people who allege they were raped. She is scheduled to be deposed on Feb. 1. Staff writer Mike McPhee can be reached at 303-820-1409 or mmcphee@denverpost.com. |