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New Details In Kobe Bryant Case Released

Prosecution To Offer Videotape Of Accuser, Photos Of Injuries

POSTED: 12:02 pm MDT September 10, 2003
UPDATED: 5:31 pm MDT September 10, 2003

Kobe Bryant's prosecutor outlined the sexual assault case for the first time Wednesday, saying there are photographs of injuries to Bryant's accuser and a videotaped statement from her about what happened in the NBA superstar's hotel suite last June.

Video

In a court brief, Eagle County District Attorney Mark Hurlbert said he planned to present the evidence at the Oct. 9 preliminary hearing that will determine whether Bryant will stand trial. He also said the main investigator in the case will testify, along with a nurse.

Hurlbert detailed the evidence as he asked the judge to throw out a defense subpoena issued for the accuser. Hurlbert said testifying at the hearing would subject the 19-year-old woman to needless "anxiety and intimidation."

The defense, Hurlbert said, can instead question investigators about the accuser.

Bryant's attorneys, Pamela Mackey and Hal Haddon, did not return a telephone message seeking comment.

Bryant, 25, is charged with sexually assaulting the woman June 30 in his suite at a nearby mountain resort where she worked. He has said the two had consensual sex.

The Los Angeles Lakers star is free on $25,000 bond pending the Oct. 9 hearing.

The brief marked the first time Hurlbert offered a glimpse of the evidence in the case, including the photos, the video and what he called an "electronically enhanced" version of Bryant's interview with investigators.

"The biggest surprise is that Kobe Bryant gave an audio recorded statement. Was that done with that with his consent, or did the detective have a hidden microphone? That's an interesting new revelation," said Craig Silverman, 7NEWS legal analyst.

Bryant's statement will corroborate the accuser's statement and "provide direct evidence to many of the elements of the offense charged," Hurlbert said.

The nurse will be called to discuss injuries shown in the photographs taken during a medical examination of the accuser, he said. Eagle County sheriff's Detective Doug Winters, the key investigator, also will testify.

Denver defense attorney Craig Silverman, a former prosecutor, said the evidence mentioned in the brief appears to be enough to convince a judge to order a trial.

However, Silverman also said Eagle County Judge Frederick Gannett may want to hear from the accuser in court.

"He can't decide the case in a vacuum," Silverman said. "The defense will argue that sex occurred. The whole issue is consent and the only person who can meaningfully talk about this is the accuser."

Hurlbert also told the judge the accuser has moved away from Eagle. He said she would have to travel a half-day to return for the hearing and it would require her to miss one to two days of work.


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