Tuesday, July 22, 2003
Kobe Bryant admitted committing adultery, but not a crime.
LOS ANGELES TIMES
EAGLE, Colo. -- Kobe Bryant was charged Friday with sexually assaulting a 19-year-old woman who worked at a resort where he was staying at the end of June.
After a two-week investigation, District Attorney Mark Hurlbert said at a news conference that Bryant is being charged with one count of sexual assault, a Class 3 felony.
If convicted of the charges, Bryant could face four years to life in prison.
Hurlbert said the decision to charge Bryant was not an easy one, but that his office felt the evidence was strong enough to prove the charges in court, but he refused to comment on the facts of the case. He also asked the media to respect the privacy of the alleged victim.
"After reviewing, after looking at the testimonials and the physical evidence, I feel I can prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt," he said.
Admission
In a statement CNN read on the air, Bryant, who is married and had his first child this year, said he had committed adultery with his accuser, but had not committed any crime.
"I am innocent of the charges," the statement read. "I did not assault that woman. I made the mistake of adultery, and I have to answer to my wife and God for that -- nothing that happened was against the will of the woman.
"I have so much to live for, and not just the contracts or money," the statement went on. "I will fight for [my family]."
Bryant's wife also released a statement, CNN reported.
"I know my husband has made a mistake, the mistake of adultery, and we will have to deal with that in our marriage. I know he did not commit a crime," Vanessa's statement read.
The woman was informed of the D.A.'s decision on Thursday, the Vail Daily reported Friday. The newspaper also wrote that Georgetown attorney Rob Wheeler, a former prosecutor with the district attorney's office, was retained by the alleged victim's family.
Reviewing material
In the past two weeks, Hurlbert has evaluated crime lab evidence and witness statements and interviewed Bryant's accuser, a longtime local resident who said the 24-year-old Laker star assaulted her and held her against her will in a room at the Lodge & amp; Spa at Cordillera in Edwards on the night of June 30.
The defendant's next court date is Aug. 6. He will be required to appear because it is a bond appearance case.
During the investigation, Bryant and his attorney, Denver-based Pamela Mackey, have maintained his innocence. "When everything comes clean, it will all be fine, you'll see," Bryant said in an interview with the Los Angeles Times on July 12. "You know I would never do anything like that."
Mackey will comment on the charges at a news conference in Los Angeles later Friday.
Knee surgery
Bryant was in Colorado for arthroscopic surgery on his right knee, a procedure performed at a clinic in Vail on the morning of July 1. Later that day, his accuser reported the alleged assault to the Eagle County Sheriff's Department.
Bryant was arrested three days later on suspicion of felony sexual assault and imprisonment, but was released on bond.
Hurlbert's deliberate evaluation of the case has generated significant local and national debate. Friends and neighbors of the woman have defended her claims against an athlete whose public reputation until this month was spotless.
"I believe her," said Renee Scriver, who coached Bryant's accuser in cheerleading and whose daughter is a close friend of the alleged victim. "She's a good kid, always respectful, honest -- a good person."