Quote:By Judith Crosson

DENVER (Reuters) - The woman who accuses basketball star Kobe Bryant (news) of rape sued the Los Angeles Laker in federal court on Tuesday for an unspecified amount of monetary damages, raising a question of whether the upcoming criminal trial will take place.





In the lawsuit filed in federal court in Denver, the woman under the name of "Jane Doe" claimed Bryant raped her when she was bent over a chair in his hotel room in a Vail-area resort last year -- a claim that matches the criminal charge against him.

Bryant, 25, who is scheduled to go on trial in criminal court in Eagle, Colorado, later this month, has pleaded not guilty and said the two had consensual sex on June 30, 2003.

In criminal cases a conviction can lead to a prison term, while civil cases result in money being awarded.

"It could well mean that she is going to urge the prosecutor to dismiss the criminal charges," Denver attorney Daniel Recht said.

Krista Flannigan, spokeswoman for Eagle County District Attorney Mark Hurlbert said the civil case will not affect the criminal trial scheduled to start on Aug. 27.

"This does not impact the criminal case at all -- nothing has changed," Flannigan said.

Bryant's criminal attorney Pamela Mackey was not available to comment.

The judge in the criminal case last week expanded a gag order on everyone involved in the case after the accuser's lawyers, John Clune and Lin Wood, said on national television that mistakes by court staff that identified the woman meant that she may need to reconsider testifying at the upcoming criminal trial.

Clune's office said he could not talk about the civil suit because of the gag order.

In the civil lawsuit, the woman who is now 20, claims that when "she was bent over the chair and forced by defendant Bryant to remain in that position, defendant Bryant sexually assaulted and raped plaintiff, by unlawfully and knowingly inflicting sexual intrusion and penetration of her vagina against her will and without her consent."

Usually, crime victims wait until the end of a criminal trial before suing in civil court, unless the statute of limitations is running out. "That's not the case here," attorney and former Denver prosecutor Craig Silverman said.

The civil lawsuit raises the question of whether the criminal case will go forward because it could be used to buttress an argument that the woman was only interested in getting money from the multimillionaire basketball player.

"If there is a trial this would provide team Kobe with additional ammunition with which to cross-examine the accuser," Silverman said

Mad Wrote:The only reason a Judge or someone from the prosecution would fuck up a case is because they know she's a head case and don't want an innocent to go to jail.

Arpikarhu Wrote:no, its just unlike you i read and learn things. try it, it will help you in threads like this.

Arpikarhu Wrote:

Mad Wrote:The only reason a Judge or someone from the prosecution would fuck up a case is because they know she's a head case and don't want an innocent to go to jail.

my sorely tested faith in humanity forces me to think that no one could be so stupid as to believe that sentence.

Arpikarhu Wrote:maybe she is sick of the judge and prosecution illegally leaking her name and private testimony. maybe she is tired of the constant haranguing of her friends, family, and coworkers by the prosecution in an attempt to wear her down and get her to drop the case. she has been mistreated by the prosecution and the judge in this case in illegal and unethical ways.

Keyser Soze Wrote:these rape cases all come down to the credibility of the victim. if the jury thinks shes a skanky whore looking for a buck, shes gonna lose, and it appears that is the case here.