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The true lesson of the Kobe Bryant case



"s_knight8"
9/4/2004 12:24:25 PM


http://www.vaildaily.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040903/COLUMS/10903001
5There is something to learn from this debacle, but it has nothing to do with
media excess. The real problem in the Bryant case was not too much media
attention or disclosure - inadvertent or otherwise - but too much legal
secrecy. It was judicially sanctioned secrecy and the ability to hold things
out of the public eye that allowed the prosecution to stagger forward with
what clearly was, from the very start, an extraordinarily weak case. If you
accept that, then it follows that more, and more-detailed, media coverage
would have better protected not only Bryant's rights but also the interests
of the public in Eagle County, Colo., which now is stuck with the bills from
this fiasco.
"The public often forgets that criminal prosecutions don't proceed by rote,
but by a series of decisions and judgments on the part of prosecutors," said
Jane Kirtley, the Silha Professor of Journalism and Law at the University of
Minnesota. "Because so much that was important in this case was done in
secret or filed under seal, the taxpayers of Eagle County are left to throw
up their hands over this result. Even if they were following the reports in
the press closely, they don't yet have a clue as to what really went wrong."
In fact, increasing judicial acquiescence to secret proceedings in cases
involving celebrity defendants now poses a serious and immediate threat to
the integrity of America's criminal justice system.
Across the United States and at all levels of jurisdiction, a malevolent fog
of convenience and expediency is descending on our courts, denying the
public its right to witness, through the surrogacy of a free press, the
justice administered in its name.
In some instances, the erosion of access is being checked. For example, when
a coalition of news organizations challenged a federal judge's decision to
bar the media and public from jury selection in the Martha Stewart case, the
2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals held that he had erred. "To hold otherwise
would render the First Amendment right of access meaningless," the appellate
justices wrote, noting that open proceedings "protect rather than threaten
the right to a fair trial."
In the Bryant case, by contrast, the Colorado Supreme Court upheld the trial
judge's order restraining seven news organizations - including the Los
Angeles Times - from publishing anything in sealed court documents
accidentally transmitted to them by a clumsy clerk. The U.S. Supreme Court
never has upheld such a prior restraint on the news media's ability to
publish or broadcast what it deems newsworthy, even when the information
contained in the report has been obtained illegally. For now, however, the
precedent established in the Bryant case ominously stands in Colorado.
Meanwhile, in California, where pop star Michael Jackson has been charged
with child molestation, what Kirtley calls "a virtually secret trial" is
being conducted by Superior Court Judge Rodney Melville.
"This judge simply believes the public can't handle information," said Linda
Deutsch, The Associated Press' special correspondent and America's premier
courtroom reporter. "Judge Melville actually said that the only way to give
Jackson a fair trial is hold everything that hasn't been released so far in
secret. We still don't know, for example, what the 28 overt acts alleged in
Michael Jackson's indictment are. This trial has reached such a point of
absurdity that even the motions to file motions are under seal."
Deutsch, who covered the William Kennedy Smith rape case in Florida and O.J.
Simpson's murder trial, pointed out that, by contrast with the Bryant and
Jackson prosecutions, both were carried out in full public view and ended in
acquittals.
"Everyone wants to have a secret trial now, but it's not the way the
American system is intended to work," she said. "Whether it's Eagle,
Colorado, or Santa Barbara County, the public is paying for these
proceedings, but when this kind of secrecy is allowed, they don't know
whether they're paying for a legitimate case or whether they're paying for
something that never should have been allowed to go on."
Kirtley notes that the conduct of the Jackson case clearly demonstrates a
growing legal trend in which "the defense and prosecution are in happy
unanimity about the virtues of secrecy. A lot of judges are equally happy to
go along. The only party left out of their harmonious little arrangement is
the public, which is why you need the press."
Attorney Theodore Boutrous, who represents a coalition of 10 news
organizations - including the Los Angeles Times - that have petitioned the
Court of Appeals to open crucial documents in the Jackson case, said the
defense, prosecutor and judge seem "united in seeking a blanket celebrity
exception to the First Amendment."
Boutrous said he has "never seen a case where fundamental documents such as
the allegations contained in the indictment remain under seal. It is
unprecedented and precludes the public from exercising its right to
scrutinize the arguments."
One of the most disturbing implications of this new judicial predilection
for secrecy, is its potential to promote further inequality. Deutsch, for
example, has pointed out that the secrecy imposed in the Bryant, Stewart and
Jackson cases "has some media experts and scholars warning that America is
developing a two-tiered justice system - one for celebrities and one for
everyone else."
As Lucy Dalglish, executive director of the Reporters Committee for Freedom
of the Press, asked, "Does the public understand what preferential treatment
these (celebrities) are receiving from the system?"
At the end of the day, this level of courtroom secrecy becomes a kind of
self-fulfilling prophecy. Attorneys and judges argue that their ability to
impanel impartial juries and fair trials are compromised by excessive and
sensational media coverage. But when the actual legal proceedings are closed
and evidentiary documents sealed, even conscientious journalists have
nothing to fall back on but leaks, often from self-interested parties - and
speculation, often ill-informed.
"The real danger of secret trials," said Deutsch, "is that things leak out
piecemeal anyway, and that becomes the basis for reporting. I'm trying to
give the public an accurate picture of whether their justice system is
working and I can't be sure I'm doing that when things are done in secret."
Boutrous puts the issue clearly: "Secrecy is not a protection because it
fosters an atmosphere that is detrimental to the defendant's right's and the
state's interests. Openness is the best protection."
That's the real lesson of the Kobe Bryant case. Do we really need to relearn
it in the Michael Jackson trial?
 
 
w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com (William J. Wolfe)
9/4/2004 3:49:53 PM


"s_knight8" <s_knight8nospam@hotmail.com> wrote in message news:<chcq7p$1on@dispatch.concentric.net>...
http://www.vaildaily.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040903/COLUMS/10903001
5
There is something to learn from this debacle, but it has nothing to do with
media excess. The real problem
<remaining bull#@($ deleted to conserve electrons>
The real problem is the ploice failed to SHOOT the criminals when they
were first caught.
 
 
"Michael Snyder"
9/5/2004 1:02:13 AM




"William J. Wolfe" <w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:5f846e6b.0409041449.62194c0d@posting.google.com...



"s_knight8" <s_knight8nospam@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:<chcq7p$1on@dispatch.concentric.net>...

<remaining bull#@($ deleted to conserve electrons>
The real problem is the ploice failed to SHOOT the criminals when they
were first caught.
Who? Kobe Bryant? Lemme get this straight -- you think the detectives
who first arrested Kobe Bryant, one of the top sports stars in the nation,
should have just shot him; even though he had no priors, no arrest record
that I've heard of whatsoever, and was not engaged in any criminal activity,
nor trying to flee or resist arrest, when they encountered him? Just on the
word of some 19 year old bimbo?
 
 
Osama Bin Bush
9/5/2004 2:38:21 AM




"William J. Wolfe" <w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:5f846e6b.0409041449.62194c0d@posting.google.com...

Who? Kobe Bryant? Lemme get this straight -- you think the detectives
who first arrested Kobe Bryant, one of the top sports stars in the nation,
should have just shot him; even though he had no priors, no arrest record
that I've heard of whatsoever, and was not engaged in any criminal activity,
nor trying to flee or resist arrest, when they encountered him? Just on the
word of some 19 year old bimbo?
<looks at doorman> Hey, who let this guy in here??!?!? He is supposed
to be kept in alt.flame.n*****.
--
http://www.majorityreportradio.com/weblog/archives/
Bush%20%20Tribal%20Sovereignty.mp3
"Conservatives love their country the way a four-year-old loves their
mommy. Everything Mommy does is good and anyone who criticizes Mommy is
bad." -- Al Franken
 
 
w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com (William J. Wolfe)
9/5/2004 1:44:36 AM


"Michael Snyder" <msnyder@redhat.com> wrote in message news:<pAt_c.12098$54.168815@typhoon.sonic.net>...


"William J. Wolfe" <w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:5f846e6b.0409041449.62194c0d@posting.google.com...

Who? Kobe Bryant? Lemme get this straight -- you think the detectives
who first arrested Kobe Bryant, one of the top sports stars in the nation,
Basketball players are $1.00 per dozen. There are thousands of seven
foot tall wannabe niggerball players.
should have just shot him;
Fuck yes. What difference does it make if there is one less niggerball
player.
even though he had no priors,
No KNOWN previous, but going on this prime example of niggerstupidity,
it's bound to have some undiscovered crime in it's past.
no arrest record
that I've heard of whatsoever,
You don't hear everthing, numb nuts.
and was not engaged in any criminal activity,
Got any prove of that?
nor trying to flee or resist arrest, when they encountered him? Just on the
word of some 19 year old bimbo?
A dead nigger is a good nigger.
 
 
w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com (William J. Wolfe)
9/5/2004 1:45:13 AM


Osama Bin Bush <Bushin2004@bush.com> wrote in message news:<Bushin2004-BF1AED.19391604092004@newssvr23-ext.news.prodigy.com>...
"William J. Wolfe" <w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:5f846e6b.0409041449.62194c0d@posting.google.com...


"s_knight8" <s_knight8nospam@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:<chcq7p$1on@dispatch.concentric.net>...

http://www.vaildaily.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040903/COLUMS/1090300
1
5
There is something to learn from this debacle, but it has nothing to do
with
media excess. The real problem
<remaining bull#@($ deleted to conserve electrons>
The real problem is the ploice failed to SHOOT the criminals when they
were first caught.
Who? Kobe Bryant? Lemme get this straight -- you think the detectives
who first arrested Kobe Bryant, one of the top sports stars in the nation,
should have just shot him; even though he had no priors, no arrest record
that I've heard of whatsoever, and was not engaged in any criminal activity,
nor trying to flee or resist arrest, when they encountered him? Just on the
word of some 19 year old bimbo?
<looks at doorman> Hey, who let this guy in here??!?!? He is supposed
to be kept in alt.flame.n*****.
Tough #@($, camel fucKKKer.
 
 
Sports Fan
9/5/2004 12:42:05 PM


On 5 Sep 2004 01:44:36 -0700, w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com (William J. Wolfe)
wrote:
"Michael Snyder" <msnyder@redhat.com> wrote in message news:<pAt_c.12098$54.168815@typhoon.sonic.net>...
Basketball players are $1.00 per dozen.
Just like your mom.
Oops, sorry, your mom is cheaper.
There are thousands of seven
foot tall wannabe niggerball players.
Fuck yes. What difference does it make if there is one less niggerball
player.
even though he had no priors,
No KNOWN previous, but going on this prime example of niggerstupidity,
it's bound to have some undiscovered crime in it's past.
no arrest record
How about shooting your racist ass, when you come out of your trailer
park high on drugs?
That would do society a favor.
that I've heard of whatsoever,
You don't hear everthing, numb nuts.
And the same could be said about you, @$#*head.
We can at least spell properly.
and was not engaged in any criminal activity,
You speak from experience.
Looks like you are with a criminal history.
Looking at your posts, I am not surprised.
Got any prove of that?
No need to, your posts speak for themselves.
nor trying to flee or resist arrest, when they encountered him? Just on the
word of some 19 year old bimbo?
A dead nigger is a good nigger.
You're mind@$#*ed, but you're too stupid to see it.
 
 
skeets@rmci.net (G_Reaper)
9/5/2004 2:45:06 PM


Osama Bin Bush <Bushin2004@bush.com> wrote in message news:<Bushin2004-BF1AED.19391604092004@newssvr23-ext.news.prodigy.com>...
"William J. Wolfe" <w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:5f846e6b.0409041449.62194c0d@posting.google.com...


"s_knight8" <s_knight8nospam@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:<chcq7p$1on@dispatch.concentric.net>...

http://www.vaildaily.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040903/COLUMS/1090300
1
5
There is something to learn from this debacle, but it has nothing to do
with
media excess. The real problem
<remaining bull#@($ deleted to conserve electrons>
The real problem is the ploice failed to SHOOT the criminals when they
were first caught.
Who? Kobe Bryant? Lemme get this straight -- you think the detectives
who first arrested Kobe Bryant, one of the top sports stars in the nation,
should have just shot him; even though he had no priors, no arrest record
that I've heard of whatsoever, and was not engaged in any criminal activity,
nor trying to flee or resist arrest, when they encountered him? Just on the
word of some 19 year old bimbo?
<looks at doorman> Hey, who let this guy in here??!?!? He is supposed
to be kept in alt.flame.n*****.
**I must apologize for allowing Willy the 'Pedo' Sheep@$#*er Wolfe
to sneak in here!! We keep him caged up in the other group but he
chewed through the rope and staggered over here. You can be assured
that he will be beaten and whipped severely when I get his worthless
ass back!! You may need to fumigate this group now that he has
contaminated it with his disgusting Stench!! Again I apologize for his
smell and his stupidity, and as I said...he WILL be dealt with in a
most unpleasant way!!**
 
 
"Dave Zero"
9/6/2004 3:20:37 AM


Sports Fan <sports@fan.home> wrote:
On 5 Sep 2004 01:44:36 -0700, w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com (William J.
Wolfe) wrote:
Just like your mom.
Oops, sorry, your mom is cheaper.
Yeah, his mom'll pay you to do her.
There are thousands of seven
foot tall wannabe niggerball players.
should have just shot him;
Fuck yes. What difference does it make if there is one less niggerball
player.
even though he had no priors,
No KNOWN previous, but going on this prime example of niggerstupidity,
it's bound to have some undiscovered crime in it's past.
no arrest record
How about shooting your racist ass, when you come out of your trailer
park high on drugs?
I'd be just as happy to shoot his racist ass when he comes out of his
trailer park stone cold sober.
That would do society a favor.
And it would feel good too.
that I've heard of whatsoever,
You don't hear everthing, numb nuts.
And the same could be said about you, @$#*head.
We can at least spell properly.
Which spelling error are you attacking, "everthing" or the splitting of
"numb" "nuts" into two words when it should be one, like dickhead or
cocksucker?
and was not engaged in any criminal activity,
You speak from experience.
Looks like you are with a criminal history.
If being a piece of #@($ is a crime, he's definitely guilty as sin.
Looking at your posts, I am not surprised.
yeah. blah blah blah nigger blah blah nigger blah blah blah. Fuckin
Albert Einstein.
Got any prove of that?
No need to, your posts speak for themselves.
Hey, you got any prove of that?
nor trying to flee or resist arrest, when they encountered him?
Just on the word of some 19 year old bimbo?
A dead nigger is a good nigger.
You're mind@$#*ed, but you're too stupid to see it.
He's beyond mind@$#*ed. He's all the way out into mindless.
--
Dave Zero
"And I don't care about making an ass out of myself because most people
already realize I am one." - Dr. Kary B. Mullis
"I criticize by creation" - Cicero
"I'm not here to make people happy. I prefer to piss people off." - Liam
Gallagher
 
 
dokanor43@yahoo.com (ozzman)
9/5/2004 9:28:22 PM


"s_knight8" <s_knight8nospam@hotmail.com> wrote in message news:<chcq7p$1on@dispatch.concentric.net>...
http://www.vaildaily.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040903/COLUMS/10903001
That's the real lesson of the Kobe Bryant case...
....is that even if he did in fact rape the skank-ass whore, she
probably wouldn't have garnered much sympathy from a lot of men
anyway.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ozzman does not endorse, support, recommend, or encourage any illegal
activities that violate current federal, state, or local law. All
information posted herein is provided for informational,
entertainment, or humorous purposes only.
 
 
w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com (William J. Wolfe)
9/5/2004 9:55:16 PM


Sports Fuckhead <sports@$#*head@trailertrashhome.home> wrote in message news:<opqmj0ltfru6tt27kp20qmlse6vcumbt69@4ax.com>...
<mindless whiggerbabble deleted to conserve electrons>
You're so far up your nigger's rectum you can't see daylight. Get a
dose of HIV and die, nigger lover.
 
 
VicXnews
9/6/2004 5:02:24 AM


w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com (William J. Wolfe) wrote in
news:5f846e6b.0409052055.5937f98f@posting.google.com:


Sports Fuckhead <sports@$#*head@trailertrashhome.home> wrote in message
news:<opqmj0ltfru6tt27kp20qmlse6vcumbt69@4ax.com>...

<mindless whiggerbabble deleted to conserve electrons>
You're so far up your nigger's rectum you can't see daylight. Get a
dose of HIV and die, nigger lover.
Nice...you can always spot a bush supporter
--
If there's a child on the south side of Chicago who can't read, that
matters to me, even if it's not my child. If there's a senior citizen
somewhere who can't pay for her prescription and has to choose between
medicine and the rent, that makes my life poorer, even if it's not my
grandmother. If there's an Arab American family being rounded up without
benefit of an attorney or due process, that threatens my civil liberties.
It's that fundamental belief-I am my brother's keeper, I am my sisters'
keeper-that makes this country work. It's what allows us to pursue our
individual dreams, yet still come together as a single American family.
"E pluribus unum." Out of many, one.
Barack Obama
-------------
Welfare State is not a dirty word. It simply means that the government has
a concern and responsibility that the standard of living shall not fall
below a certain level. The Democratic Party has been meeting this
responsibility since FDR
Johnny Morgan
 
 
Sports Fan
9/6/2004 1:39:14 AM


On 5 Sep 2004 21:55:16 -0700, w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com (William J. Wolfe)
wrote:
Sports Fuckhead <sports@$#*head@trailertrashhome.home> wrote in message news:<opqmj0ltfru6tt27kp20qmlse6vcumbt69@4ax.com>...
<mindless whiggerbabble deleted to conserve electrons>
You're so far up your nigger's rectum you can't see daylight. Get a
dose of HIV and die, nigger lover.
Nic Cappacio?
Is that you?
You sure talk the same way.
You racist pig.
I bet tyou're too coward and trashy to talk like this in real life.
On usenet you're such a tough guy, hiding behind your Internet
connection.
Fuck off.
 
 
w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com (William J. Wolfe)
9/7/2004 4:34:39 AM


nigger lover <sports@$#*wit@fan.home> wrote in message news:<sb8oj09574h58imh3tcuoq133b7s2ioc53@4ax.com>...
On 5 Sep 2004 21:55:16 -0700, w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com (William J. Wolfe)
wrote:
Nic Cappacio?
Is that you?
You sure talk the same way.
You racist pig.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I've heard that tired old nigger lover's piss weak
attempt at imtimidation so many times it's lost its bark, nigger
lover. Do try to think up something original.
I bet tyou're too coward and trashy to talk like this in real life.
Dream away, nigger lover.
On usenet you're such a tough guy,
I'm tough wherever I am, slap nuts.
hiding behind your Internet
connection.
Right back at ya, NIGGER LOVER.
Fuck off.
Or what, #@($ for brains?
 
 
w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com (William J. Wolfe)
9/7/2004 4:36:27 AM


VicXnews <noniggernews@news.com> wrote in message news:<AbS_c.54568$nk.38486@okepread05>...
w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com (William J. Wolfe) wrote in
news:5f846e6b.0409052055.5937f98f@posting.google.com:
Nice...you can always spot a bush supporter
Maybe, @$#* knuckle, but you clearly cannot.
 
 
Sports Fan
9/7/2004 6:46:10 AM


On 7 Sep 2004 04:34:39 -0700, w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com (William J. Wolfe)
wrote:
nigger lover <sports@$#*wit@fan.home> wrote in message news:<sb8oj09574h58imh3tcuoq133b7s2ioc53@4ax.com>...
Yeah, yeah, yeah,
Glad to see that you agree that you are a pig.
I've heard that tired old nigger lover's piss weak
attempt at imtimidation so many times it's lost its bark, nigger
lover. Do try to think up something original.
Yawn.
Racist douche bags like you are boring and stupid, and they cannot spell
properly either.
I bet tyou're too coward and trashy to talk like this in real life.
Dream away, nigger lover.
So why don't you walk in a neighborhood where the majority is black and
start calling people names and your racist boring 2 word vocabulary, and
see how you much of a tough guy/girl you are?
You can't because you are a coward.
On usenet you're such a tough guy,
I'm tough wherever I am, slap nuts.
You're not tough, you are a coward and lost soul.
hiding behind your Internet
Right back at ya, NIGGER LOVER.
Yawn.
You are boring.
Fuck off.
Or what, #@($ for brains?
Or you'll be either laughed at, as this, or you get your sorry racist
retarded ass plonked, #@($ stain.
You seem to be angry at black people, I am willing to bet that you had a
crush on a black guy and your were rejected.
Or your $5 toothless trailer trash hooker mom had a black customer.
Either way, wake up, the kkk is not legal anymore.
 
 
rioroad@hotmail.com (Pauli G)
9/7/2004 12:22:10 PM


Sports Fan <sports@fan.home> wrote in message news:<fcerj0pft47r48bvps47026chg2j10igrm@4ax.com>...
On 7 Sep 2004 04:34:39 -0700, w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com (William J. Wolfe)
wrote:
Glad to see that you agree that you are a pig.
Yawn.
Racist douche bags like you are boring and stupid, and they cannot spell
properly either.
I bet tyou're too coward and trashy to talk like this in real life.
So why don't you walk in a neighborhood where the majority is black and
start calling people names and your racist boring 2 word vocabulary, and
see how you much of a tough guy/girl you are?
You can't because you are a coward.
On usenet you're such a tough guy,
You're not tough, you are a coward and lost soul.
Yawn.
You are boring.
Fuck off.
Or you'll be either laughed at, as this, or you get your sorry racist
retarded ass plonked, #@($ stain.
You seem to be angry at black people, I am willing to bet that you had a
crush on a black guy and your were rejected.
Story of your life, huh Sporty?
 
 
Sports Fan
9/8/2004 5:47:49 PM


On 7 Sep 2004 12:22:10 -0700, rioroad@hotmail.com (Pauli G) wrote:
Sports Fan <sports@fan.home> wrote in message news:<fcerj0pft47r48bvps47026chg2j10igrm@4ax.com>...
Story of your life, huh Sporty?
I am not the one stalking others on usenet, you are.
You are now supporting a racist.
I don't know if you can go any lower.
 
 
rioroad@hotmail.com (Pauli G)
9/9/2004 11:29:43 AM


Sports Fan <sports@fan.home> wrote in message news:<0v9vj09a45vjs3djl1efoblqg25dgufhhg@4ax.com>...
On 7 Sep 2004 12:22:10 -0700, rioroad@hotmail.com (Pauli G) wrote:
I am not the one stalking others on usenet, you are.
You are now supporting a racist.
I don't know if you can go any lower.
Supporting a racist? You've made some illogical leaps before, but
this one takes the cake. You need to practice connecting the dots and
not jumping all over the page.
 
 
indigo_ghoul@hotmail.com
9/9/2004 4:43:25 PM


w_j_wolfe20o3@yahoo.com (William J. Wolfe) wrote in message news:<5f846e6b.0409070334.2c3d30f@posting.google.com>...
nigger lover <sports@$#*wit@fan.home> wrote in message news:<sb8oj09574h58imh3tcuoq133b7s2ioc53@4ax.com>...
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I've heard that tired old nigger lover's piss weak
attempt at imtimidation so many times it's lost its bark, nigger
lover. Do try to think up something original.
Dream away, nigger lover.
I'm tough wherever I am, slap nuts.
They did not hire you, right?
hiding behind your Internet
Right back at ya, NIGGER LOVER.
Or what, #@($ for brains?
 
 
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