The Duke Case

Lesley Stahl Talks To Parents Of Accused, Prosecution Forensics Expert

(CBS)  Mary Ellen Finnerty says it was like a physical hurt.

"I mean, you felt like someone hit you with a baseball bat. It was almost too much to bear, as we sat there. And he's sitting ten feet away from us," Kathy Seligmann explains.

"He" is District Attorney Nifong, who has declined 60 Minutes' repeated requests for an interview. However, he recently admitted that he was aware of those other DNA findings all along and that his failure to disclose them was simply an oversight. Earlier this month, he rejected the growing criticism of his handling of the case.

"I don’t feel I’m part of the problem. I feel I've assisted in revealing the problem," Nifong said.

But Duke law school Professor James Coleman has been outraged by Nifong's conduct for months and says he may have obstructed justice when he failed to turn over all the DNA evidence.

"So why do you think it wasn’t turned over to the defense? Highlighted? Neon signs going off and on?" Stahl asks.

"Because it discredited her version of what is supposed to have happened that night," Coleman says.

Asked if he is now surprised, Coleman tells Stahl, "I was surprised. I never thought he would have intentionally tried to hide exculpatory evidence. That for me went beyond anything I would have imagined."

If it’s found that Nifong's conduct was "intentional," he could face sanctions or disbarment. He may also face questions about why he didn't interview the accuser about the case until ten months after she made the allegations.

When Nifong's chief investigator finally interviewed her for the first time last month, she said she could no longer be sure she was raped, and so Nifong was forced to drop the rape charge. The accuser has also changed the time frame of the attack, now saying it ended about 12:00 a.m. midnight. But time-stamped photographs taken by a player at the party show her still dancing from 12:01 to 12:04. a.m.

And now she says Reade Seligmann didn’t commit any sex act on her at all. And yet all three players still stand accused of sexual assault and kidnapping.

"My son said, 'Mom, when is it going to stop? When is this insanity going to stop?' Knowing that he was still being charged with crimes that he didn’t do," Kathy Seligmann recalls.

"Yeah, so even at this moment of good news — " Stahl remarks.

"Exactly. He said, 'That's crazy. It didn't happen.' Every time you think this is going to end, another crazy story comes up. And you know, to know that you can drop the rape charges, but continue on persecuting these kids. It just doesn’t make sense," Seligmann says.

"I think that this is a case where a prosecutor got in over this head, got into a hole and kept digging. And then went from making mistakes to misconduct," Coleman says.

Asked what this says about Nifong's commitment to justice, Coleman says, "It says he’s indifferent to justice."

Nifong is now under investigation by the North Carolina state bar, accused of dishonesty, fraud and deceit. The indicted players, who were suspended by Duke University, have been offered a chance to return to school.

When Seligmann, Finnerty and Evans were charged with rape last spring, they were all but condemned by the prosecutor, who called them a bunch of hooligans. You can only imagine what it has been like for the parents of the boys, month after month. With each new disclosure that revealed cracks in the case, they have thought the charges would go away.

Stahl spoke to them this week about the toll this has taken on their families, their anger at D.A. Nifong, and their disbelief that despite a lack of DNA evidence, questions about the accuser's credibility, and now the recusal of the prosecutor, their sons are still facing serious charges.

"You have to remember that this has never been about the evidence. Never. If it were about the evidence, nine months ago, this case would've been totally dropped. This is about a man who chose to use a troubled young woman's story of fantastic lies to advance his own political career, which was crumbling. He needed something big. He needed that magic bullet, and he shot it. He shot it at our sons," says David Evans' mother Rae.

"Every mother of a son in this country should be scared to death that this was so easy to perpetrate. All that it's based on is a woman's word and she's changed that story seven, eight, nine times. And we still sit here. Our families have been held hostage of this D.A., of this woman, of the police department," says Kathy Seligmann.

"It's important to keep emphasizing they still face sex assault charges," Stahl remarks.

"We don't know what our futures hold. Our children don’t know what our futures hold," Seligmann replies.

[mickey443]

how in the hell that you can say that about that girl if you dont now her how do you now that it was for drug money what you thing black women take there clothes off for money it dids not matter what i girl wear or how they dance it dont mean that men can go and put there hands on them and try to have *** with them and whats wrong with her image so you think all black girls should stay home and wacth there kids and it dont matter how many baby dad she have so go f ---- off and how you now that she have 3 baby dads

[donamaree-2009]

To the new elected prosecutor Mr. Ray Cooper:

Do America a favor and give us some light at the end of the tunnel and bring justice back to the courts. Dismiss this atrocity of a trial which was doomed by unethical behavior on Mr. Nifong's part, prosecute for the lies and revenge on both the strippers part. Unlike Mr. Nifong perhaps you can feed the press the truth, give these young men their reputations back from the condemnation of the groups who call them "rich brats" their obscene jealousies of their privileged lives is sickening. Let America turn the key in the door of justice for all, even if you are rich and white. The tables have turned in this country in a way that can cause an internal revolution in the future, make an example of this travesty and do whats right, not only for these young men and their families, but for all Americans. Unethical behavior, lies and deceit do not add up to without reasonable doubt.

[fflintstone4]

Rae Evan's final comments provide strong insight into the families and the accused individuals. Those words, "I'd say, with a smile on my face, 'Mister Nifong, you've picked on the wrong families...you will pay every day for the rest of your life." So she's saying white families with lots of money (if they can affort to send their kids to Duke) can and will do what they want and apparently enjoy it too. These three individuals may not have raped this young woman, but I know they aren't innocent angels either.

[thinkforself]

Sorry ....I had 3 things to say. Pardon my typos. Thank you! :-)

[thinkforself]

I just have to say two things: 1. The rap community is not what influences the male perception of the female...this is far older than that...Remember stripping, which is closely associated to prostitution is one of the OLDEST professions in the world. I don't think Rap, as music can claim that. Also, there a far less black strippers that white...disrespect is disprect [of self and others]. AGAIN, RACE is irrelevant. 2. Plainly put the girl was looking for a pay-day. Most people are of the impression, that every student attending Duke is wealthy. There are so many stories of young women (white, black, yellow, purple), trying to set up and/or trap a guy - celebrity or not. She probably figured this would provide her enough drug money...while she continues to receive assistance. Now, as a woman, I found that particular choice of profession,disgraceful, but it was not my choice. As a black woman - from an affluent background with a successful family and life [not just monetarily, I am so tired of people jumping onthis cause to contribute to the saving of the balck community, by globally lumping us into the same categories.

[hermit22]

I would not have to think twice about not going to apply for school at DUKE, and that would not be because of the stripper, it would be because they apparently condone nasty behavior in a frat house. "tut tut" welcome back boys."

[jfmr-2009]

Horray for Rae Evans!

[olemiss85]

can SEE why a woman could just loose her cool and let them have it, hit them up for rape, let the chips fall where they may. That is not right, but she may have felt that was her only weapon. I'm thinking worse of that frat house now that i did at the beginning of this story.
Posted by Hermit22 at 05:11 AM : Jan 21, 2007

You finally concede she lied but somehow still want to justify this blatantly wrong action because "she may have lost her cool" so we'll let her "hit them up for rape" and "let the chips fall where they may"? Did this really come from a sound mind. So acceptoing that you now agree she lied about the rape, if the "chips fell...that the boys were found guilty of a rape you now agree didn't occur, that's okay? You ......I can't even type it. Some one please tell this guy what nonsense this is.

[olemiss85]

Gee Hermie, you say you were innocent? How do we know you were innocent? Oh, that's right, because you say you were. Hmmm, seems that these 'frat boys" say they are innocent of rape and their words are backed by the DNA testing from DNA samples they voluntarily gave to the police before lawyers were involved. ( from the discovery provided by the State not the defendants). So why do we have to believe you and are not supposed to believe the lacrosse players. Because they threw a party some, some not all, consider to be in poor taste, their veracity is not as cedible as yours? How do we know you weren't robbed of money you stole from somebody else? Because you say so? Being a fair minded person, your supposition of me to the opposite, I will give you the benefit of the doubt. You were robbed of funds you had obtained legally. The boys threw a party that was legal. Just as innocent as you were, claim to have been. Why is it so hard to give them the benefit of the doubt?

[olemiss85]

Olemiss85, i thought of that. but i was innocent. the frat house might be innocent of rape, but they did put themselves in a questionable situation. They DID. I already thought of the difference. The frat house WAS into something nasty.they were acting like jackasses. walking down the street IS innocent. drinking and setting up a strip party is not. it may be legal, but it is not innocent.
Posted by Hermit22 at 03:19 AM : Jan 21, 2007
Since when is it a crime to act like a jackass? Y Doing something nasty is not illegal per se. Porn movies, smut magazines, STRIPPERS... can all involve doing something nasty but it's a matter of taste not jurisprudence. I didn't say the frat boys acted like the examples I gave. I said even if they did everything I wrote... it still doesn't justify the making of a false accusation. You still don't get it. You never will. If,If, If... the "frat boys" (you can't even get this fact right,it was a lacrosse team party) acted out every example I suggested, do you mean to tell me that woman was still justified in crying rape? It was her only weapon? Her weapon against what? She was already away from the party before she cried rape. She didn't cry rape to get away from the party, she had to be carried out because she was too intoxicated to leave on her own. There are pictures and the testimony of the other dancer to this effect which are unchallenged by even that idiot Nifong.

[jfmr-2009]

First of all theses men are INNOCENT! There was no rape, one of the boys has stamped times saying he left the house, the other boy did not have a mustasche. You are right about the image these black girls have. She should not be stripping for drug money, she should be in her home taking care of the three children she had with three differnt men.

[no_angel-2009]

First of all, these men are not innocent, what they are is not guilty of rape. The women should be prosecuted for filing a false police report, because that is what they did. Not to mention, they have made even harder for women who really have been raped to come forward. More importantly, young women, especially young black women need to be taught that just because the media has continued to portray them as oversexed, poll dancing idiots, which are on earth solely to be verbally, physically and sexually abused, does not mean that is their function. These women should be taught that you attend a university to learn, not to get on a pole. Maybe if the black community addressed how black males, more specifically the rap community, presents black women in the media, these women would not be taking off their clothes in front of a group of white misogynists in the first place.

[jfmr-2009]

Dr. Brian Meehan should also go to jail with Nifong for hiding the fact that the boy's DNA did not match any of the DNA found in the underwear or on the body of the stripper! Withholding this evidence caused many, many, months of horror for these families!
There was no case on April 10th yet the boys were indited on April 17th! How horrible, how can those men have a clear conscious, what they put those families through.

[jfmr-2009]

I think the President of Duke Uiversity should step down or be fired! Nifong should pack his bags and retire or go to jail for his holding evidence in this case.

[jfmr-2009]

Many men go to strip clubs. What the boys did was have her come to the house, poor judgement I agree, but it is nothing out of the ordinary that men do. The facts are on the table, no rape, she's a liar, she has costs the courts and families now nearly millions of dollars to clear their sons names who are INNOCENT. The stripper and her friend should spend the rest of their lives in jail for this ridiculous outrage on INNOCENT boys.

[jfmr-2009]

Tt costs over $43,000 to send your child to Duke University. I would think many, many, times before I sent my sons to that college or any other near there. The Duke boys are INNOCENT and they were used by the stripper and her friend, and the stripper and her stripper friend were USED by Nifong to get re-elected. Duram should wake up and realize that! Look at the facts. There was no rape, the boys left, the stripper is a drug addict, a liar, and should go to jail and have her children taken away from her by the courts.

[hermit22]

olemiss85, i just reread your 1:38am Jan 21 post.
i have never thought it was anywhere near ok to charge someone with rape if it didn't happen, but after rereading your description of what may be par for the coarse at a strip ain't-no-party,
i can SEE why a woman could just loose her cool and let them have it, hit them up for rape, let the chips fall where they may. That is not right, but she may have felt that was her only weapon. I'm thinking worse of that frat house now that i did at the beginning of this story.

[hermit22]

olemiss85, what is illogical, is for you to bring up "in poor taste", then when i agree with that, for you to insist you don't agree with that because i agree. it seems like that is the basic core of predjudice. "if hermit agrees with it, than of course i won't agree with it." what is really mind boggeling is that you said it in the first place.

i might be loosing the 3 brain cells i've been opperating on.

[hermit22]

i don't mind admitting to being ignorant of alot of this stuff, like that "party" according to your description was alot more insidious than i would have ever thought, but it is NOT "hate" to question the frathouse behavior.

i think anyone on a jury should be allowed to ask questions, NOT have to come up with a verdict based on what lawyers squirrel around with.

[hermit22]

olemiss85, is it slanderous for you to say "the functionally illiterates....blogging away idiotically...."