Published account leaves out parts that weren't recorded

By Charlie Brennan, Rocky Mountain News
September 23, 2004

A transcript published last week of Kobe Bryant's statement to detectives did not contain all his remarks, and a court battle still rages about public access to the rest of his account.

Sports Illustrated published a report Sept. 14, stating that it had obtained Bryant's sealed statement. In the story, author Jeff Benedict reported that Bryant told detectives about another NBA star who had paid money to avoid similar legal trouble.

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Bryant said the unnamed player would pay women "not to say anything," and said the player had spent up to a million dollars to get out of situations such as Bryant's, Benedict reported.

But when the Vail Daily published a version of Bryant's 75-minute taped, transcribed statement on Sept. 16, it contained no mention of Bryant's statement concerning the other NBA player.

The reason for a discrepancy between the Sports Illustrated account and the Vail Daily account is that Bryant said more to the Eagle County sheriff's investigators than was captured on their hidden recorder.

That is reflected in the July 14 ruling on the admissibility of Bryant's statement by Chief District Judge Terry Ruckriegle. He said there were no fewer than 11 gaps in the recording, and that it was a defense expert's opinion that those were not "simple clicks" but represented "actual interruptions" in the tape.

"If the purpose of the surreptitious recording was to capture the suspect's answers, it was particularly ineffective," Ruckriegle noted.

The Sports Illustrated piece, in reporting Bryant's comments about the other NBA player, attributes that information to the detectives' "summary" of their conversation with Bryant; something that was not included in the tape and transcript obtained by the Vail Daily.

"It's clear that there is much more information, in addition to the recording and transcript of his actual statement, that remains to be sought," said Denver attorney Christopher Beall, who represents a consortium of 11 media groups seeking open records in the Bryant case.

"That has potential news value - and not just news value, but is also valuable to assessing the decisions of, for example, the sheriff, the district attorney, and law enforcement investigators, in how they conducted the case."

Bryant, a six-time All-Star for the Los Angeles Lakers, had been charged with sexual assault in Eagle County July 18, 2003, but saw that charge dismissed on the eve of trial Sept. 1, when his alleged victim elected not to go forward.

Last week, Bryant attorney Pamela Mackey asked Eagle County District Judge Richard Hart to appoint a special investigator to probe the leaking of Bryant's transcript. The Bryant team obtained a court order Sept. 8, prohibiting the release by officials of "any documents, papers and things or any other criminal justice record" relating to the Bryant case.

Mackey's motion also asked that Hart authorize investigators to "seize all evidence relevant to the violation" of the restraining order.

In a separate but related legal battle, the Bryant defense team also asked Hart to seal the Bryant case file. That is opposed by both the media and Eagle County District Attorney Mark Hurlbert, and a hearing on that motion is set for Oct. 1.

Judy Margolin, assistant general counsel at Time Inc., which owns Sports Illustrated, said her office had not been notified officially of Mackey's motion seeking a special investigator and seizure of evidence related to the transcript leaks.

Benedict, who wrote the Sports Illustrated piece, declined comment on the records battle.

brennanc@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-892-2742

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