Kobe In Court, Not On It

Kobe Bryant's legal team could decide Thursday whether to go forward with a preliminary hearing, which could entail a review of some potentially damaging evidence in open court, or go right to trial.

County Judge Frederick Gannett planned to meet with defense lawyers and the district attorney 45 minutes before the scheduled preliminary hearing to discuss what evidence will be presented, reports CBS News Correspondent Lee Frank.

"If there is a preliminary hearing, Kobe Bryant is going to have to sit in court, listen to a police officer summarize the rape case against him, maybe see some pictures of the alleged victim and whatever bruises she may have, and endure that until the judge decides that he's heard enough to find probably cause," says CBSNews.com Legal Analyst Andrew Cohen.

Or the defense could decide to waive the hearing and proceed to trial on allegations Bryant sexually assaulted a 19-year-old woman June 30 in a suite at a nearby mountain resort. That could put off the juicy accusations for another 30 days.

"There's going to be a lot of legal wrangling, but at the end of the day, either Kobe Bryant will waive his right to the preliminary hearing, or the judge will find probable cause, and, of course, either way, the case will then be a lot closer to trial," Cohen said.

Security was tight around the courthouse for a hearing in Kobe Bryant's sexual assault case, with two metal detectors in place and armed guards prepared to stand watch.

Security for the hearing Thursday was beefed up after dozens of threats were made against the prosecutor, the judge and Bryant's accuser. Gannett has acknowledged receiving letters containing death threats, and two men have been charged with threatening Bryant's accuser.

Bryant has said he and the woman had consensual sex. The case against him could lead to a celebrity trial the likes of which have not been seen since O.J. Simpson was acquitted of murder charges eight years ago.

Bryant's seven-minute court appearance in August attracted about 300 reporters, photographers and support people. Now even more media members are in Eagle, reports Frank, from 75 news organizations.

Says Becky Gadell, who is handling Eagle County logistics, "I'm making certain that the environment, inside and outside, is safe and orderly and as professional as possible."

A big white tent on the courthouse lawn is media headquarters. Across the street, a formerly vacant lot, leased for the week for $10,000, is now filled with 30 television satellite trucks.

Bryant, free on $25,000 bond, left the Los Angeles Lakers' Hawaii training camp on Wednesday to travel to Colorado.

Unlike Bryant's first appearance, cameras were banned from the courtroom Thursday.

Legal analysts speculated that defense attorneys Hal Haddon and Pamela Mackey would waive the hearing because they have no chance of winning it and little chance of learning more than they already know.

By waiving the hearing, a decision that Bryant's attorneys could announce at the last minute, they also would avoid the disclosure of details of the alleged sexual assault until trial.

"From a public relations standpoint, that type of evidence would most likely be very damaging to Kobe Bryant's reputation," said Karen Steinhauser, a former prosecutor and a professor at the University of Denver law school.

If Bryant's lawyers choose to avoid the evidence-revealing preliminary hearing and move on to district court, court spokeswoman Karen Salaz says they're ready.

"The district court judge could come into the courtroom and they could conduct the first appearance for the defendant," she told CBS News.

By agreeing to an immediate arraignment, Bryant would not have to come back to Eagle again in the next 30 days to answer the charge.

"If there is a preliminary hearing, it likely will contain a lot less scintillating information than prosecutors initially hoped for," said Cohen. "That's because the defense objected to that sort of evidence, and the judge agreed to limit it."

Gannett also has denied defense requests to force the woman to testify, and has deferred to a state district judge the question of whether the defense can have access to her medical records.