Battle expected over the latest push for info on accuser

By Peggy Lowe, Rocky Mountain News
November 29, 2003

More legal battles over medical records are expected in the Kobe Bryant rape case after published reports surfaced saying his accuser is in an Arizona treatment center.

Media reports and some of the 19-year-old Eagle woman's friends have said she entered a rehabilitation center for substance abuse and sexual trauma.

That's more fodder for the continued conflicts between prosecutors and Bryant's legal team.

Bryant's lawyers, the Denver team of Pamela Mackey and Hal Haddon, want records from the woman's two emergency hospital treatments and from her visit to a rape crisis center.

Eagle District Court Judge Terry Ruckriegle will eventually rule on those requests.

"You can anticipate a big battle over these medical records just as they're battling over prior medical records," said Craig Silverman, a former Denver prosecutor. "If she was under the influence at the time of the alleged crime or when she reported it or when she testifies, then the jury is entitled to know about it."

The woman accused the NBA star of raping her while he was staying at the Lodge & Spa at Cordillera on June 30.

Bryant, 25, denies the charge and says the encounter was consensual.

The alleged victim's attorney, John Clune, didn't return a call seeking comment. The Eagle County District Attorney's Office also wouldn't comment.

"Out of respect for the privacy of the family, we're not going to comment at all," said Krista Flannigan, the DA's spokeswoman.

A representative of a high-profile Arizona facility that offers treatments for psychological conditions and addictions would neither confirm nor deny that Bryant's accuser was there.

An advocate for rape victims, Cynthia Stone of the Colorado Coalition Against Sexual Assault, said the woman was traumatized during the alleged crime and has been retraumatized since then from the massive media publicity and even death threats.

"We always advise victims to not go through this alone and to seek whatever help would be appropriate to them," Stone said. "If this is true, that she is in a treatment center, we think this is a very positive step for her on her road to recovery."

Prosecutors last week asked Ruckriegle to close any of the evidentiary hearings scheduled in the next few months. The judge might close those hearings if the lawyers are arguing about very personal issues, Silverman said.

lowep@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-892-5482

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