Nifong Admits and Denies April 10 Meeting in Letter to the State Bar

In today’s News and Observer, Anne Blythe reports details of a letter Durham County District Attorney Mike Nifong sent to the State Bar on January 16 in response to a request to supplement his letter of December 28. The contents of this second letter reveal the difficulty Defendant Nifong is having in keeping his stories straight. In his January letter, Nifong, incredibly, demonstrates the troublesome effects of selective amnesia as he both admits and denies meeting with DNA Security lab director on April 10.

Perhaps anxious to avoid the implications of the natural questions this meeting raises about his subsequent meeting with the false accuser the following day or maybe terrified of the culpability inherent in hatching a plan at that meeting to withhold evidence of actual innocence and then drawing up, two days later, indictments for two of the men exonerated by the results of testing discussed at the meeting, Defendant Nifong initially denies recollection of the April 10 meeting with Dr. Meehan.

"I can only report that I have no recollection of that meeting and that I have no documentation or other evidence that I ever attended such a meeting," Nifong said in the Jan. 16 letter.

Later in the letter, Nifong’s selective amnesia goes into remission as he admits to “our April 10, 2006, meeting.”

“But in the Jan. 16 letter to the bar, Nifong wrote about a May 12 meeting in which Meehan provided a report to the prosecution.

"He also discussed with us the results of the tests he had performed since our April 10, 2006, meeting," Nifong said.”

As LS Forum member lskinner reminds us, the eloquent sage Steve Martin once taught of the benefits of the "I don't recall" defense and the terrible consequences caused by forgetting to say, “I forgot.”

“You.. can be a millionaire.. and never pay taxes! You can be a millionaire.. and never pay taxes! You say.. "Steve.. how can I be a millionaire.. and never pay taxes?" First.. get a million dollars. Now.. you say, "Steve.. what do I say to the tax man when he comes to my door and says, 'You.. have never paid taxes'?" Two simple words. Two simple words in the English language: "I forgot!" How many times do we let ourselves get into terrible situations because we don't say "I forgot"? Let's say you're on trial for armed robbery. You say to the judge, "I forgot armed robbery was illegal." Let's suppose he says back to you, "You have committed a foul crime. you have stolen hundreds and thousands of dollars from people at random, and you say, 'I forgot'?" Two simple words: Excuuuuuse me!!" Steve Martin

This revelation leaves us with one simple word for Defendant Nifong: Oops!