EAGLE, Colorado, 22 October 2003 — US basketball hero Kobe Bryant must stand trial on charges of raping a 19-year-old woman in his room at a luxury mountain resort in June this year, a judge ruled on Monday.
The prosecution had proved “probable cause,” or shown enough evidence to warrant a jury trial for one of the world’s best-known sportsmen, Judge Frederick Gannett said.
“The court finds that the evidence, taken in a light most favorable to the prosecution, is sufficient to ‘induce a reasonable belief’ that the defendant committed sexual assault as charged,” he said in a written ruling.
Traces of the accuser’s blood found on her underwear and on Bryant’s T-shirt following the alleged attack constituted “evidence of submission and force,” the judge said in the nine-page document.
“Her statement (to police) presents evidence of sexual intercourse against her will and subject to the application of force, resulting in pain and injury,” Gannett said.
The ruling came after a two-day preliminary hearing that revealed explosive evidence of a sexual encounter at a posh resort on June 30 in a Rocky Mountain town 48 kilometers west of Vail, Colorado.
Bryant is charged with felony sexual assault, a count equivalent to rape in this western state, and could face up to life behind bars if convicted in a trial that is expected to take place around the middle of 2004. While he has not yet formally entered a plea on the charge of raping the hotel concierge on June 30 after she came to his room following mutual flirting between the pair, Bryant has strongly denied the allegation.
The married 25-year-old Los Angeles Lakers guard — who was arrested on July 4 and freed on $25,000 bail, contends that the sex was consensual. Gannett ordered the National Basketball Association superstar back in court in Eagle on Nov. 10, when he will be advised of the charges against him and may also enter a plea.
But legal experts stressed that the standard of proof required to demonstrate probable cause was very low and that the judge was obliged to favor the prosecution when deciding whether to put the case to a jury.
“Things will look very different when the case finally goes to trial,” Colorado criminal lawyer and former prosecutor Craig Silverman told AFP.
Mavericks Acquire Walker, Delk in Five-Player Trade
The Dallas Mavericks acquired three-time All-Star Antoine Walker and guard Tony Delk from the Boston Celtics in a five-player trade on Monday.
The Celtics took center Raef LaFrentz, swingman Jiri Welsch and forward Chris Mills in the deal. Boston will also get Dallas’s first-round pick in the 2004 draft.
“We have been looking for a point forward since I have been here and I feel we have gotten one of the best in the league in Antoine Walker,” Mavericks coach Don Nelson told reporters. The 6-foot-9 Walker averaged 20.1 points, 7.2 rebounds and 4.8 assists last season. He has two years remaining on a contract that will pay him $13.5 million and $14.625 million the next two seasons.
