Judge: Alleged victim's medical records can't be used in court case

By Charlie Brennan, Rocky Mountain News
April 22, 2004

The judge in the Kobe Bryant sexual assault case dealt a blow to the defense Wednesday, ruling that the alleged victim's medical records cannot be used against her in court.

As a result of the order by District Judge Terry Ruckriegle, Bryant's lawyers will not be able to to use the 19-year-old woman's medical records to tell jurors about her two suicide attempts in the five months preceding her encounter with the Los Angeles Lakers basketball star.

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Some legal experts said the victory for the prosecution is limited, that the Bryant defense team may still be able to introduce evidence about those incidents through non-medical witnesses.

But the judge's decision was hailed by the prosecution and victim advocates.

"We are pleased with the judge's ruling related to this issue," said Krista Flannigan, spokeswoman for Eagle County District Attorney Mark Hurlbert.

"Thank goodness," said Kathie Kramer, spokeswoman for the Denver-based Rape Assistance and Awareness Program, "that people who report sexual assaults can presume, just like you and I, that their communication with medical providers will remain private."

Ruckriegle ruled that "the public policy underlying this statutorily created physician-patient privilege demands a strict adherence to protection" of that privacy right.

Ruckriegle's order also stated, "The court concludes that there is not sufficient evidence in the record to support a finding that the victim waived her physician-patient privilege" concerning records of medical treatment she received Feb. 23 in Fort Collins and May 30 in Glenwood Springs.

Bryant's legal team contended she had done so implicitly, in part, by discussing her medical history with friends.

Ruckriegle also quashed defense subpoenas that had been served to three medical providers from whom Bryant's alleged victim sought treatment last year.

The defense team argued for the relevancy of the 19-year-old Eagle woman's medical records in a Dec. 12 case filing, which stated, "The pattern of attention-seeking conduct established by the accuser during the suicide attempts is substantially similar to her conduct of June 30, 2003," the date Bryant allegedly assaulted the woman at the Lodge & Spa at Cordillera in Edwards, where he was a guest and she an employee.

That same defense document charged that the alleged victim was taking a prescription anti-psychotic drug that is approved for the treatment of schizophrenia, raising questions as to her credibility.

Former prosecutor Karen Steinhauser, now a professor at the Denver University College of Law, said Wednesday's ruling has ramifications beyond the Bryant case.

"It means that people should not be concerned, that if they talk to friends and family members for support about their medical condition, that that doesn't mean that they've waived their privilege," she said.

But defense experts said the ruling was a modest win for the prosecution.

"This order doesn't stop the defense from attempting to put in evidence about this girl's psychiatric or psychological problems," said Denver attorney Dan Recht, past president of the Colorado Criminal Defense Bar.

"They just can't do it through her medical records," Recht said.

"The very same information could potentially still come into evidence before a jury," he said. "If they have lay witnesses that will say these things, then the judge has to decide, in a different order, whether or not they can put it in."

Denver defense attorney Craig Skinner agreed.

"The question becomes, will this information get in through other means, through witnesses, or through the victim, and the answer is, we don't know yet.

"But, certainly, the ruling today does not provide the defense with any optimism that that information will be allowed in," Skinner said.

Former Denver prosecutor and legal analyst Craig Silverman said he was not surprised with Ruckriegle's ruling.

"It would have been shocking if the judge ruled the other way," Silverman said.

Brennanc@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-892-2742

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