The Denver Post
Bryant lawyers say DAs violated court order
Thursday, June 03, 2004 -
Kobe Bryant's defense team is accusing prosecutors of violating a court order to choose a laboratory that will allow a defense expert to watch DNA testing in the NBA star's sexual assault case.
In a court filing made public today, defense attorney Hal Haddon said the judge had ordered prosecutors to allow his DNA expert, Elizabeth Johnson, to observe tests that must completed by June 18. But Haddon said he received a letter from prosecutors Tuesday saying the lab they had chosen would not permit Johnson to watch. "The prosecution has chosen an unacceptable laboratory," Haddon said. He asked state District Judge Terry Ruckriegle to order prosecutors to explain their choice of laboratory. Prosecution spokeswoman Krista Flannigan denied any court order was violated. "We have complied with the court's order as it was stated," she said. "If there are any little details that need to be worked out, we'll need to do that." Flannigan said prosecutors have no problem with Johnson observing the testing, but said the lab might have policies prosecutors cannot control. She said she did not know whether the sides would have to go to Ruckriegle for a solution or whether they could negotiate an agreement outside court. She did not know whether negotiations were under way.
Click here for an interactive presentation on Kobe Bryant's career.
Click here for an archive of court documents in the People v. Bryant case.
Click here for The Denver Post's graphic on the events of June 30.
Click here for the 9NEWS archive on the case.
Click here for the CourtTV archive on the case.
Bryant, 25, has pleaded not guilty to felony sexual assault and said he had consensual sex with a 19-year-old woman last summer at the Vail-area resort where she worked. If convicted, the Los Angeles Lakers star faces four years to life in prison or 20 years to life on probation and a fine up to $750,000. Prosecutors have not publicly disclosed what evidence they want tested, though it is believed to involve evidence gathered during hospital exams of the accuser and Bryant. Semen and pubic hair found in underwear the woman wore to the exam does not match Bryant. The defense has said the woman had multiple sexual partners the week of the alleged assault as part of a "scheme" to gain the attention of an ex-boyfriend. Prosecutors have said the Colorado Bureau of Investigation conducted DNA testing on the material last fall, and that a lab hired by Bryant's attorneys conducted its own testing this spring. The results were different, and prosecutors want to try to replicate the defense laboratory's results, District Attorney Mark Hurlbert said during a May 27 hearing. He would not elaborate in open court, and Flannigan declined to explain why Hurlbert wants to do the new tests. Ruckriegle had required prosecutors to submit the evidence for testing by Tuesday, with a final report on the results to be submitted by June 28. Haddon said Johnson was present during other testing at the CBI laboratory in February, and the CBI did not complain about her presence. "There is no reason why similar arrangements cannot be made with CBI for testing," he said. |