| Filing Without Prejudice Gives Prosecutors Option Of Refiling Charges
The prosecutors in the Kobe Bryant case will ask that the charges for the Los Angeles Lakers basketball star be dismissed without prejudice, 7NEWS reported Wednesday afternoon.
To file a case without prejudice means that prosecutors can refile charges at a later date. The judge will have to rule on the prosecution's motion before the case can be officially dismissed.
Earlier in the day, Bryant's defense attorneys had filed a motion to dimiss the case, claiming that prosecutors intentionally withheld information favorable to their client.
Nationally known medical examiner Dr. Michael Baden was retained by prosecutors to bolster their argument that the alleged victim's injuries proved that Bryant raped her. However, Baden had disagreed, saying that the bruising and minor lacerations could have come from consensual sex.
After the prosecution dropped Baden as a probable witness, defense attorneys asked about it and were told Baden's conclusions were not helpful to Bryant's case.
Now the defense is arguing that withholding this information is damaging and charges against Bryant should be dismissed saying witness had information that "undermined the accuser's allegations and the prosecution's case, and corroborated Mr. Bryant's defense on a central issue -- the cause and significance of the accuser's alleged injuries."
Source: The Denver Channel | |
