Find Law: The Cold Hard Proof that the Duke Defendants are Innocent

[pnwmom]

In these three columns, a legal columnist sifts through the evidence and calls for the prosecutor to show his cards -- as is required by N.C. law -- or drop the case.

"Is the District Attorney in the Duke Lacrosse Rape Scandal Turning A Blind Eye To Valuable Evidence?

"The Cold, Hard Proof That Suggests The Three Defendants Are Innocent" -- May 19, 2006

http://writ.news.findlaw.com/commentary/20060519_spilbor.html

SNIP

"Thus far, the defense camp has come forward with a host of seemingly reliable, exculpatory evidence -evidence that will be admissible in court, and that is likely to sway a jury. I'm not talking about, maybe, kinda, sorta, or could be, exculpatory evidence either. I'm talking about weighty evidence - receipts, photos, phone records, alibi witnesses, an absence of DNA, and now actual DNA - that directly supports the defendants' claims of innocence.

"A plethora of proof supporting a defendant's claim of innocence - not just the government's failure to carry its burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt -- is a rare pearl in the practice of criminal defense. It should cause the D.A. to reassess his case.

SNIP

Some pundits have suggested that the only explanation for the District Attorney's pressing on in the light of strong evidence that the defendants are innocent, is that he has a card up his sleeve. . . .

"He ought to opt to reveal it right now - to give the defense a chance to counter it. When evidence suggesting innocence is as strong as it is in this case, it's wrong to just let the case go to trial and "see what the jury says." These three young men's live will be forever affected, even if they are acquitted. Even an arrest leaves a scar; the scar of trial is far deeper."

SNIP

ALSO:

"The Defense Remains Way Ahead of the Game" -- April 28th

http://writ.news.findlaw.com/commentary/20060428_spilbor.html

SNIP

"Let's start with the time-stamped digital camera photos. There was speculation that the time-stamps might have been altered - but defense attorneys pointed out that the time stamps matched the time shown on watches in the photos themselves, disproving that theory quite conclusively.

"The key photos place the accuser on the back steps of the house where the party took place at 12:30:47 a.m. - and there again (this time with a cut on her foot) at 12:37:58 a.m. - leaving only about seven minutes for the alleged rape to have occurred. Meanwhile, other photos make clear that there was no other time frame during which the rape could have occurred.

SNIP

At 12:24 a.m., according to an ATM receipt, Seligmann's ATM card was used at a nearby Wachovia bank. Was this a clever ploy by Seligmann to create an alibi by having someone else use his card while he was raping the accuser? Hardly. A cabdriver confirms Seligmann's trip, with a friend, to the bank, and it appears phone records will show him calling an out-of-state girlfriend just after the ATM trip. The driver's account is confirmed by his log of stops. And presumably, Seligmann's friend can confirm all this, too.

SNIP

The bottom line: Extremely persuasive evidence - much of it the result of machine records, not human testimony - shows that Seligmann was gone during the entire period of time when the attack could have occurred.

ALSO:

"The Rape that Never Was" (Why the case should be dropped) -- April 14
http://writ.news.findlaw.com/commentary/20060414_spilbor.html