Media Want Files Unsealed

Media organizations seeking the release of records in the Kobe Bryant sexual assault case will appeal a judge’s order to keep the files sealed, an attorney said Thursday.

The decision to appeal came hours after prosecutors said they will not contest the order by Eagle County Judge Frederick Gannett, who ruled last week that only the arrest warrant and related documents could be released to the public.

More detailed documents, including the arrest affidavit and search warrant, were to remain sealed, making the order unsatisfactory to the media organizations trying to have the records made public over the objections of prosecutors and the defense.

“We plan on appealing,” said Steve Zansberg, an attorney representing the media organizations -- which include The Times.

The appeal must be made by Tuesday and will be heard by a 5th District Court judge, not by Gannett, Zansberg said. A final determination is unlikely to be made before Bryant’s preliminary hearing Oct. 9.

The media organizations, anticipating that the defense or prosecution will seek to have the preliminary hearing closed, also asked Gannett to allow such requests only up to 30 days before the hearing.

“We want ample time for arguments, even enough time to take it to the Colorado Supreme Court,” Zansberg said.

Under Colorado law, a judge has the discretion to close a preliminary hearing in felony sexual assault cases, but it is rarely exercised. Much of the information in the sealed documents could be made public during the preliminary hearing, when the prosecution must establish that enough evidence exists for the case to go to trial.

Among the documents that will remain sealed are those that contain medical test results, witness statements, evidence that can be challenged in court and, Gannett said, “factual statements describing graphic details of the alleged sexual encounter.”

The documents Gannett said could be released will reveal little that is not publicly known, Zansberg said. Dist. Atty. Mark Hurlbert said the documents approved for release would not threaten Bryant’s right to a fair trial or the privacy rights of the accuser.

Bryant, a Laker guard and five-time NBA All-Star, faces four years to life in prison if convicted of the felony charge. He says his accuser, a 19-year-old Eagle woman, had consensual sex with him June 30 at a hotel. She says the sex was forced.