Bryant Prosecutors Fire Back

In another indication that the relationship between prosecutors and Kobe Bryant’s defense team has worsened, Dist. Atty. Mark Hurlbert accused attorneys for the Laker guard Friday of raising “preposterous” issues and falsely claiming they wish to set a trial date soon in the sexual assault case.

Legal analysts and sources close to both sides have said that communication between Hurlbert’s office and Bryant attorneys Hal Haddon and Pamela Mackey has nearly come to a halt. In recent months, the two sides have argued about access to physical evidence, the scope of questioning of witnesses and who is to blame for the slow pace of proceedings.

Bryant, 25, is accused of raping a 19-year-old woman June 30 at a Colorado mountain resort. He has said they had consensual sex.

Prompted by a motion two weeks ago by John Clune, the attorney representing the accuser, and a letter to Judge Terry Ruckriegle from the woman’s mother, Hurlbert and Haddon both said that they too wanted a trial date set as soon as possible.

Ruckriegle, of the state 5th Judicial District, said he plans to hear oral arguments either April 26-28 or May 10-12 before asking Bryant to enter a plea. Colorado law stipulates that a trial date will be set within six months of the plea.

In his filing, Hurlbert questioned Haddon’s sincerity.

“He says he has always wanted to move the case along, yet will wait so 5th Judicial District policy can take its course,” Hurlbert said. “We are, through no fault of the people, 10 months after the crime with no arraignment.”

Hurlbert also said that for Haddon to take issue with prosecutors’ using the term “victim” to describe the woman is “preposterous.” Haddon said in a filing earlier this week that the woman should not be called a victim because there is a “serious dispute” over whether a crime occurred.

“The two sides are barely talking,” said Larry Pozner, a Denver attorney who has followed the case closely. It marked the second day in a row that prosecutors fired back at the defense. On Thursday, Deputy Dist. Atty. Ingrid Bakke sought to block a subpoena for Johnray Strickland, the woman’s boyfriend at the University of Northern Colorado in 2002-03.

The subpoena asked that Strickland turn over any written communication with the woman and any pictures of her. Strickland was asked to appear at the Eagle County Justice Center on April 26, when a rape shield hearing is scheduled to be completed.

Strickland became a key figure in the case after appearing on NBC’s “Today” show in December, when he said that the woman told him she was bipolar.

The defense has said the woman’s mental condition could explain her allegation against Bryant. Experts in the use of antidepressants and their side effects, including Dr. Ann Blake Tracy, have been in contact with Bryant’s attorneys.