Bryant, his accuser settle civil lawsuit

Neither side commented on the end of the case.
DENVER (AP) -- Kobe Bryant and the 20-year-old woman who accused him of rape nearly two years ago settled her civil lawsuit against him Wednesday, ending a sordid case.
Terms were not released. A statement faxed to The Associated Press by Bryant's attorneys said only that the matter had been resolved "to the satisfaction of both parties."
"The parties and their attorneys have agreed that no further comments about the matter can or will be made," the statement said. A motion for dismissal stipulating that the case can never be refiled was filed simultaneously in Denver federal court.
Bryant was in Boston for a game against the Celtics and was unavailable before the game. Los Angeles Lakers spokeswoman Allison Bogli said before the game that Bryant would not comment on the settlement.
Keeping it quiet
The agreement probably spells out financial penalties for revealing any details, said Steve Cron, a Los Angeles attorney familiar with celebrity cases.
"It's in both parties' interests to have this remain confidential," he said. "That's one of the incentives for them to settle: He didn't have to do a deposition, the lurid details wouldn't be posted on some Web site. She didn't have to face the rigors of having a deposition by his lawyers and she'll gain some privacy as well."
The lawsuit, filed three weeks before the criminal case against Bryant collapsed last summer, sought unspecified damages for mental injuries, public scorn and humiliation the woman said she has suffered since their June 2003 encounter at the Vail-area hotel where she worked.
The woman, now pregnant and married, has not commented publicly on the case.
Bryant, a 27-year-old married father of one, has apologized for his "behavior that night and for the consequences she has suffered," but has insisted the sex was consensual. He has never been questioned under oath about what happened in his hotel room the night before he had knee surgery at a Vail clinic.
Shortly after jury selection began in the criminal case, prosecutors in Eagle County dropped the single felony sexual assault count after the woman told them she could not take part in a trial. Prosecutors said they were confident they could win a conviction, but only with her cooperation.
Copyright 2005 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.