DA in Duke Lacrosse Rape Case Wants Out
Jan. 13, 2007— -- After weeks of criticism , District Attorney Mike Nifong has requested that he have himself removed from prosecuting the Duke Lacrosse rape investigation.
Three Duke Lacrosse players, Reade Seligmann, Collin Finnerty, and David Evans were indicted in 2006 on charges of rape, sexual assault, and kidnapping after a Lacrosse team party on the night of March 13. Rape charges were dropped in December after the accuser could not recall key details of the alleged attack.
A source close to the investigation said Nifong sent a letter to North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper asking his office to assume responsibility of the case. A press spokeswoman for North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper confirmed to ABC News that Cooper's office has received a request for a special prosecutor on the case. Last week that spokeswoman stated that the Attorney General would take on the Duke Lacrosse case only if requested by District Attorney Nifong.
Nifong refused to comment on the news, telling reporters he was "not commenting on this case" as he walked out of the courthouse today. The accuser met with Nifong yesterday, appearing to so that she could be served a subpoena to appear at a Feb. 5 pre-trial hearing.
In Durham, Nifong's decision was met with widespread approval from those close to the case.
"I think it's the best thing for all involved, especially for my cousin,'' said the accuser's cousin, Jakki, who asked that only her first name be used. "Maybe whoever comes in [to replace Nifong] can salvage this thing, because right now the whole case is being overshadowed by his mistakes. I think this is the best situation possible right now."
"We welcome this,'' Kevin Finnerty, Collin's Finnerty's father told the ABC News. "We'd be glad to have an objective set of eyes on this case."
Finnerty was re admitted to Duke earlier this month, but was not registered and was not on campus when the semester began on Wednesday.
Not long from now, Nifong faces charges of his own after being served an ethics complaint from the North Carolina bar. He will be subject to disciplinary action for his comments to the press about the lacrosse players and the case against them, with penalties ranging from a private reprimand to disbarment.
David Freedman, an attorney in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, will be representing Nifong in the public hearings and told the Associate Press today that "[Nifong] feels, as a result of the accusations against him, that he would be a distraction and he wants to make sure the accuser receives a fair trial."
"He still believes in the case. He just believes his continued presence would hurt her," Freedman said.
Duke University has also expressed its approval of Nifong's hand off. "We welcome the news that the district attorney has asked to be removed from this case," John Burness, Duke's Senior Vice President for Public Affairs, said in a statement.
"This matter needs to be placed in the hands of an independent party who can restore confidence in the fairness and integrity of the legal process. We hope this change will lead to a fair and speedy resolution of this case." A disciplinary hearing for Nifong is scheduled for May 11 in Raleigh, North Carolina and will be open to the public.
Rony Camille and Chris Francescani contributed to this article.