Details of Undisclosed Police Document Revealed in Durham Herald-Sun Article

Durham Herald-Sun Reporter, Ray Gronberg, dropped a bomb on the City Council's meeting scheduled for this Thursday with the report of an undisclosed police document that "investigators talked with the accuser more than they disclosed previously, and that Mayor Bill Bell and other high-ranking city officials convened two days before a stalled case got a jump start with a photo lineup that violated policy."

It also details that Investigator Himan interviewed the false accuser, Crystal Magnum, more than he reported and did not reveal in his notes.

Police document details lacrosse events
By Ray Gronberg : The Herald-Sun

DURHAM -- A police document detailing new information about the Duke lacrosse case investigation reveals that investigators talked with the accuser more than they disclosed previously, and that Mayor Bill Bell and other high-ranking city officials convened two days before a stalled case got a jump start with a photo lineup that violated policy.

Bell urged police to expedite a resolution to the case partly because he worried that racial unrest could erupt, he acknowledged Tuesday. That fear was hidden from his public statements at the height of the Duke lacrosse case when he expressed confidence in Durham's racial unity and condemned national media portrayal of black-white tension.

A copy of the police document -- labeled "Timeline of events for council" but kept so tightly under wraps that it may never have reached elected officials -- was obtained by The Herald-Sun.

Among other data entries, the timeline said Ben Himan, Durham's lead detective in the Duke lacrosse case, spoke to the accuser on March 28, 2006. That discussion isn't mentioned in the case notes of either Himan or his supervisor, Sgt. Mark Gottlieb.

According to the document, Bell met with Himan March 29, 2006, two days before authorities agreed to conduct a photo lineup that violated city policy but prompted indictments of three innocent men.

Documentation shows City Manager Patrick Baker and former Police Chief Steve Chalmers were at the discussion. It occurred in a regularly scheduled Wednesday morning meeting that allows Bell, Baker and Senior Assistant to the City Manager Reginald Johnson a chance to confer about the city's business..." Herald-Sun

The article also reports about another high level meeting when the case was stalled and makes clear that City Manager Baker, Mayor Bell, high level City of Durham Officials, and Duke University Officials were discussing the investigation which would result in three innocent Duke Lacrosse players being indicted for a crime that never happened. At that time all 46 Lacrosse players were being investigated and being publicly scorned in the community and on campus by the Duke Professors called the 88. Wanted posters of the Lacrosse Team were later distributed on campus. It raises the question was justice denied the entire Lacrosse team to "solve" a potential racial community upset over a crime which didn't happen.

A racial problem that was created by the false accusations of Crystal Magnum and repeatedly in the inflammatory remarks of Durham PD Crime-stoppers Cpl Addison on WRAL TV, in the Durham Herald-Sun, and the NewsObserver. Those comments would claimed a young Black college student, mother of two, who was dancing for the first time before a group to support her children, was brutally raped orally, anally, and vaginally. They would later prove to be totally false as declared by NC AG Cooper.

The article reports.

"Bell's morning meeting with Himan and Chalmers was only the first high-level conference about the case to occur on March 29, 2006.

That afternoon, Himan and Gottlieb conferred with Baker, Chalmers, Deputy Police Chief Ron Hodge, a police attorney and two Duke officials, Aaron Graves, associate vice president for campus safety and security, and Duke Police Director Robert Dean. After that, the detectives met with Nifong.

The timeline -- compiled the following week by Gottlieb with help from Himan and Investigator Michele Soucie -- shows Himan met again with Nifong on March 30, 2006. Himan and Gottlieb also met with Nifong on March 31, 2006, a key date in the investigation. That is when Nifong told the detectives to show the accuser a photo lineup that omitted "fillers" -- images of people who weren't on the lacrosse team. Such a lineup violates policy because any pick would have been a lacrosse player..."

This article comes at an unfortunate time for the City Council as it is scheduled to discuss the terms of a settlement with the threatened civil rights lawsuit by attorneys representing Evans, Finnerty and Seligmann.

The deadline for the City's response is Friday Oct 5.

(Reporter Ray Gronberg - LieStoppers tips its hat to you!)

Major Mistake Free DPD: Chief Opens Public Till For Pal

Laughter erupted when [DPD deputy chief Ronald H.] Hodge said he didn't "recall that the Durham Police Department has been involved in something where we made major mistakes in the past five years." - Brianne Dopart, The Herald-Sun (June 6, 2007)

"Police chief adds adviser to advance his goals" - The News & Observer (May 31, 2003)

Police Chief Steve Chalmers has hired a temporary adviser to help him with organizational development, departmental planning and public relations at cost of $12,000 -- roughly a third of the starting salary of a Durham police officer.

Asa Spaulding Jr., 68, former chairman of the Durham County Republican Party and a one-time Durham mayoral candidate, was hired May 27 for the new, eight-week position that didn't require advertisement. His initial assignment is to implement a job evaluation system for 36 high-ranking police officers and senior administrators in the department. The department has 23 vacancies among its 454 sworn officers.

Chalmers said he needed the $60-an-hour consultant to distribute crime information to the public and quickly provide the media "more accurate and timely information," and to help him fulfill his goals for the department. Spaulding, a longtime civic activist and former secretary of the University of North Carolina Board of Governors, served on a citizens' committee set up by former Police Chief Teresa Chambers.

"I thought I could take advantage of the expertise he has," Chalmers said Friday. "He was able to help me understand things that I would need to do."

"Chief is asked for study" - Samiha Khanna, The News & Observer (April 9, 2004)

Amid concerns about overspending, a City Council member asked Thursday that Durham's police chief hand over work by a consultant he hired last year.

Police Chief Steve Chalmers hired Asa Spaulding Jr. in May for an eight-week study of the police department's employee evaluations and public relations at a rate of $60 an hour. But Spaulding's temporary employment with the city was extended to six months, costing taxpayers $45,000.

Council member Eugene Brown wrote Chalmers a letter Thursday requesting that Spaulding's work be presented to the City Council.

Chalmers said Thursday he would submit the work to City Manager Marcia Conner, but he has declined to release information about Spaulding's work to reporters. Such a response is inappropriate for the city's police chief, Brown said in his letter.

"I find it sadly ironic that Mr. Spaulding views his task as 'image enhancement' when, in the long run, his hiring has actually done more to hinder your department's image than advance it," Brown wrote in his letter to Chalmers.

The city has been bogged down with financial challenges, Brown wrote.

"To pay Asa Spaulding Jr. $45,000 for a work product that no one has seen sends a wrong message to our beleaguered taxpayers," he wrote.

Later this month, Durham police will propose a $5.5 million budget increase for next year, but taxpayers may not be "in a mood" to support tax hikes in light of the city's recent financial problems, Brown's letter said.

He also questioned whether Spaulding's four extra months of employment violated city policy. But such extensions are permitted by city policy, said Alethea Bell, director of human resources. No extensions were documented, but they rarely are, she said.

Conner said Thursday night that she had not seen Spaulding's work, but she thought Chalmers and Spaulding verbally agreed to extend his term.

"I don't think they thought it was a violation of policy," Conner said.

Chalmers would not comment further Thursday.

Spaulding, who is the former chairman of the Durham County Republican Party and once ran for mayor, was removed from the city's payroll Jan. 1, Bell said. In the past he also had served on a citizens committee set up by former Durham Police Chief Teresa Chambers.

"Report on police released" - Margie Fishman, The News & Observer (April 13, 2004)

Under pressure from a City Council member, Police Chief Steve Chalmers released a "final" report Monday that was compiled by his temporary adviser, Asa Spaulding Jr., nearly three months ago at a cost of $45,000.M

But the eight-page document, focusing on organizational development and government and public relations, includes few recommendations that the department can act on immediately. In several places, Spaulding refers to additional reports that are needed. His employment with the city ended Dec. 31. He turned in the "progress report" Jan. 19, although Chalmers said it represented his final work product.

Spaulding has fulfilled all of his obligations, said Chalmers, who called the work "extremely worthwhile.

A former chairman of the Durham County Republican Party, a one-time Durham mayoral candidate and a longtime friend of Chalmers', Spaulding was initially hired in May for an eight-week position that didn't require advertisement. Under city policy, temporary employees can be hired for up to three months. But Chalmers extended Spaulding's employment to six months after, he said, he got permission from the city's human resources director. Chalmers maintained that his personal relationship with Spaulding was not related to his hiring.

If Chalmers had sought competitive bids on the work, Spaulding wouldn't have been able to participate because he doesn't hold a valid city business license.

Last week, council member Eugene Brown criticized Chalmers in a letter for refusing to release a public document that cost roughly the same as one police officer. Chalmers submitted a copy to City Manager Marcia Conner late Monday, but Conner was not available to comment. Chalmers also provided a series of memos written by Spaulding from June to December.

Chalmers said he didn't make a copy of the report available sooner because he was still tweaking it. But when asked what changes were made, he couldn't point to any that had been documented.

Much of Spaulding's work focused on assessing the performance of senior staffers by conducting interviews, visiting other police departments and using a system developed by his consulting firm to determine whether employees needed to be reassigned. Apart from submitting a draft reorganization plan, which recommends eliminating the position of deputy chief, Spaulding said much of his work was personnel-privacy protected. Specific recommendations are to be addressed in a later report, according to his final report.

Among Spaulding's other recommendations: ensuring that the city lobbyist is an advocate for police issues and designating a department employee to handle government grants. "I have already done considerable work in this area for the department," he notes in his report. He also proposes starting a monthly television show for the department to enhance its image, distributing an annual progress report to the public and reactivating a citizens' advisory committee to which he was appointed by former Police Chief Teresa Chambers.

"It appears that in terms of providing timely and good public information, we are accomplishing this quite well," Spaulding wrote. He later said he did not speak to media outlets in making that determination but reviewed news releases and observed the Police Department spokesman during interviews.

Since submitting his report, which Chalmers initially described as "a draft," Spaulding said he has continued to volunteer no more than 15 hours a week to begin implementing his recommendations. He has asked Chalmers to rehire him as a temporary employee at nearly half his $60 hourly rate.

"Spending like a chief" - The News & Observer (April 16, 2004)

Durham's police chief, Steve Chalmers, let a consultant who was paid by the hour charge the city $45,000 for work that took months longer to complete than was originally contracted for. It hardly came as a surprise, given Chalmers' apparent reluctance to release a report by the consultant, that its contents were underwhelming.

Chalmers released the study under pressure by first-term City Council member Eugene Brown. The chief had hired his self-described longtime friend, Asa Spaulding Jr., to do a two-month study of the police department's employee evaluations and its public relations processes. Without anybody else's approval -- an approval that was not required under the city's bizarre contracting policies -- Chalmers extended the study for four additional months. Spaulding, member of a prominent Durham family as well as a Republican Party activist and former candidate for mayor, received $60 an hour.

The report that was released -- eight pages, calling for further studies -- doesn't shed any especially bright light on how the police department is run. The employee evaluation section was withheld for personnel privacy reasons, so Spaulding has to be given some benefit of the doubt as to the value of his research.

Still, that leaves the issue of a department head being allowed to extend such a consulting contract unilaterally. Certainly Chalmers should have had to obtain the approval of City Manager Marcia Conner to spend that much additional public money. That the contract was awarded to a friend just makes matters look worse.

Brown was on the ball in requesting that Chalmers release the report. It took too long for the chief to comply. He would do a favor for his department, buffeted by scandal in recent years, if he adopted a strict policy of openness.

Conner needs to close the policy loophole that gives department heads such as Chalmers an excessive amount of financial freedom. If she doesn't, it falls to the entire City Council to demand that a tighter grip be kept on the public till.

"We are gathered here" - Karen Guzman, The News & Observer (August 1, 2005)

The father of the bride, Mayor Bill Bell, strolls through the parking lot -- black tuxedo jacket thrown over one arm -- to the sprawling red brick complex where his daughter, Kristen, will marry Marcus Hughes tonight. ... Bill Bell is, after all, the mayor. And the groom's mother, Valarie Spaulding Little, is a member of the prominent Spaulding clan, founders of N.C. Mutual Life Insurance Co. ... Durham Police Chief Steven Chalmers, a boxy white gift tucked under one arm and a black straw hat perched jauntily atop his head, signs the guest book. ...

Our Collective Voice: JSwift's Letter to Durham Mayor Bell & City Council

Dear Mayor Bell and Members of the City Council:

I assume that you have all followed closely the ethics trial of Durham District Attorney Michael B. Nifong. As you know, the disciplinary panel voted unanimously to disbar Mr. Nifong for his actions in the Duke lacrosse case. The panel concluded that there could be “no discipline short of disbarment that would be appropriate in this case given the magnitude of the offenses we have found and the effect on the profession and the public.” Lane Williamson, the chairman of the panel characterized this case as a “fiasco.”

The panel echoed the April conclusion of Attorney General Roy Cooper in acknowledging the “actual innocence of the defendants.” Yet three young men were indicted, and they remained under indictment for almost a year, despite overwhelming evidence that they were innocent—indeed, evidence that in fact no crime had occurred.

The disbarment of Mr. Nifong represents only the first step in the search for justice.

Mr. Nifong could not have carried out this “fiasco” without help from others, including his investigator and others in his office and, most importantly, officers in the DPD. This prosecution was almost certainly a deliberate frame of three young men for a crime that Nifong and the DPD knew had never occurred.

The claim that the DPD was conducting a “good investigation” before Nifong became involved on March 24 is demonstrably false.

The DPD investigation violated departmental guidelines and procedures. Virtually every step of this investigation was deeply flawed. The DPD repeatedly failed to interview witnesses, investigate available evidence, re-interview witnesses when their statements were contradicted by evidence, and, most importantly, make any attempt to reconcile the many versions of the accuser’s story or to challenge her when her accusation was contradicted by all other evidence. The DPD ignored, avoided and ultimately hid exculpatory evidence. They allegedly attempted to create evidence by filing inaccurate affidavits and reports and intimidating and influencing witnesses. Members of the DPD apparently violated policy with their inflammatory public statements, the method in which they conducted lineups, and their failure to maintain a contemporaneous record of their activities.

During the ethics hearing, Investigator Benjamin Himan admitted under oath that he testified before a grand jury and obtained indictments with no evidence to support the accusation—he asked “with what?” in conversations with superiors. Yet, these superiors endorsed Nifong’s decision to ask for indictments. Himan also admitted under oath that Sergeant Mark Gottlieb prepared affidavits (signed by Himan) in connection with search warrants and the non-testimonial order based on false information.

Attorney General Cooper announced in April that there was “no credible evidence” to support the accusation. Yet, in January, after Nifong’s agreement to hide exculpatory evidence had triggered the Bar complaint and his recusal, DPD Deputy Police Chief Ronald Hodge expressed the view that the case would move forward and proceed to trial. I paraphrase Himan: With what?

In May, in an attempt to salvage his widely discredited report, Chalmers made the incredible claim that “at the time we did go to the grand jury, Mangum’s accounts were consistent.”

The committee you have commission to review the actions of the DPD in connection with this “fiasco” must have the clear mandate and expertise to determine whether Nifong and others committed crimes in connection with this prosecution. Without that mandate and expertise, justice will not be served.

I remind you again of the words of Dr. Martin Luther King: “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

I implore you to rise to this challenge and ask merely that you stand with justice.

Thank you.

Submitted by: JSwift

Durham City Council Takes One Step Forward and Two Steps Backward

The Durham City Council: (sitting from left to right) Mayor Pro-Tem Cora Cole-McFadden, Mayor William V. "Bill" Bell, Diane N. Catotti, (standing from left to right) Howard Clement, III, Eugene A. Brown, J. Michael Woodard and Thomas Stith, III.

In a special meeting held on Friday, the Durham City Council approved Mayor Bill Bell’s proposal for a twelve member committee, comprised of law enforcement representatives, defense attorneys, and private citizens, to conduct a review of the police department’s participation in the Durham Hoax which led to the wrongful indictment of three innocent men for crimes that never occurred. In response to the deceptive report furnished by Durham Police Chief, Steve Chalmers, and City Manager, Patrick Baker, the City Council had previously adopted, by a 6-1 vote, a resolution to move forward with a second review of the department’s shortcomings. Friday’s meeting represented a tangible step toward fulfilling the City Council‘s resolution to commission an independent review. While positive action was taken by the City Council, Friday’s meeting also raised additional concerns and left other key questions unanswered.

Approving the nomination made by Mayor Bill Bell, the City Council selected former NC Supreme Court Justice Bill Whichard to head the Durham Hoax investigation. As chair of the committee, Justice Whichard brings an unimpeachable reputation for integrity and public service that promises to give the review a much needed impression of credibility and authority.

Published reaction to Whichard’s leading the review included:

"I think Judge Whichard is an ideal person to help us with this committee," Councilman Michael Woodard said. "He has great legal experience, a keen mind, a love of this community - his hometown." WTVD

"He certainly has the credentials, educational intellect to lead this committee, but more importantly he wants to do it," said Bell. News 14

Whichard described his expectations for the investigation as follows:

In one sense this committee is about the past. Its function is to attempt to ascertain and report the truth about events that are now history. In a broader, more significant sense, however, it is about the future. Its overriding purpose is not just to identify any improprieties or mistakes that may have occurred in the handling of the lacrosse players` cases, but to assist local law enforcement in avoiding such in the future.

I look forward to working with the mayor, the City Council and the committee in this endeavor. LS

According to Mayor Bell’s proposal, the twelve member committee will be comprised of law enforcement officials, criminal defense attorneys, and community persons. In addition to Justice Whichard, four law enforcement officials were also approved by the City Council. Thankfully, the suggestion by an unnamed councilperson for one of the law enforcement officials to be a member of rogue District Attorney Mike Nifong’s office ("Another council member has recommended a member of the Durham District Attorney's Office or the State Conference of District Attorneys." WTVD) was rejected in favor of three current and one former police chief. The four chosen law enforcement officials - Chief Darryl Stevens of Charlotte; Chief Jim Fealy of High Point; Chief Pat Norris of Winston-Salem; and former Chapel Hill Chief Gregg Jarvies - were among those suggested by North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper and SBI Director Robin Pendergraft after the AG spurned the mayor’s request for an SBI review.

A brief review of the backgrounds of the four selected police chiefs indicates each seems well suited for the review ahead of them.

Chief Stevens was one of six law enforcement representatives on the initial NC Actual Innocence Commission established by NC Supreme Court Chief Justice Beverly Lake in 2002. The NCAIC, whose mission in part was defined as “develop potential procedures to decrease the possibility of conviction of the innocent in North Carolina” is “nationally recognized as a model for effectiveness and reform” according to the Innocence Project. In 2003, the NCAIC issued recommendations for eyewitness identification procedures that directly contradict the procedures employed by the Durham Police Department in framing the Duke Innocents.

Upon becoming Winston Salem's Police Chief in 2004, Pat Norris was also named to the NC Actual Innocence Commission, which continues to meet every six to eight weeks. Shortly thereafter, Chief Norris announced that her department would implement the lineup recommendations of the Chief Justice’s Actual Innocence Commission. Earlier this year, Norris instituted a computerized photographic identification procedure which exceeds the NCAIC recommendations by including seven fillers for each suspect.

Chief Pat Norris of the Winston-Salem Police Department and other officers demonstrated yesterday how the police department would use a new, computer-based photo lineup that a state commission says can help avoid wrongful identifications by witnesses to crimes.

Norris announced in May 2004 that the department would adopt guidelines from the Chief Justice's Commission on Actual Innocence.

...

Until now, Winston-Salem police have generally used lineups that were paper based, and witnesses could choose from six photos. Witnesses viewing the new lineups can choose from eight photos and will use a computer to make their selections.

Witnesses will view each photo separately on the computer screen to make their selections. The length of time a witness spends looking at each photo, the selected photo and other information are recorded in a computer-generated report as part of the process.

If a witness fails twice to make a selection after viewing each photo in the lineup, the process ends.

Norris said that her department is one of the first police departments in the state to use the computer software for witness identification.

"The software does the whole procedure for us, so there is less human error involved," Norris said. "It will improve the reliability of eyewitness identification."

Additionally, the officer administering the photo lineup will not know the suspect's identity. The commission said that investigators who know the suspect's identity could inadvertently tip off a witness.

In addition to her recognition of the dangers of corrupt identification procedures, Chief Norris fits well with the committee in light of the recently concluded Winston-Salem City Council commissioned review of the wrongful conviction of Darryl Hunt. which addressed many of the same issues facing the Durham Hoax committee and directly impacted her department.

Ironically, it was Patrick Baker who secured participation by Chiefs Stevens and Norris. Both have championed proper lineup procedures, unlike Baker who has repeatedly defended the corrupt procedures employed in the Durham Hoax. It will be interesting to discover the Chiefs' take on Baker’s public adoption of Defendant Nifong’s defense of the crooked lineups that helped manufacture charges against the Duke Innocents.

High Point Chief, Jim Fealy, is another great fit for the Durham Hoax Committee. In particular, Chief Fealy rates inclusion for the integrity demonstrated by his willingness, contrary to Durham Police Chief Chalmer's reluctance, to turn one of his officers over for prosecution when he discovered that false statements were made in an affidavit to secure a search warrant.

Charges of cocaine trafficking against three area people were dropped Wednesday because of an "invalid search warrant," according to court records.

The State Bureau of Investigation is examining the case and allegations that a High Point Police Officer provided false information.

…

But on Tuesday, a group of High Point police officers found inconsistencies in a fellow officer’s report. The group notified police Chief Jim Fealy, who notified the Forsyth County District Attorney's Office and the SBI. TL

We look forward to the prospect of Chief Fealy reviewing the false affidavits offered by DPD investigator Benjamin Himan and ADA David Saacks.

Former Chapel Hill Police Chief Gregg Jarvies also brings relevant experience to the Durham Hoax Committee. In 2003, Jarvies was faced with allegations of witness intimidation by two of his own officers. In response, Jarvies, unlike Durham's Steve Chalmers, immediately investigated the allegations, moved to terminate one officer and suspend another when the allegations were substantiated. Jarvies then released his findings and actions in full to his concerned community.

"The allegations have been substantiated." That statement, drawn from an eight-page report by Chapel Hill Police Chief Gregg Jarvies, sharply summarizes the findings of his department's internal investigation into a teenager's claim that Detective John Moore "misrepresented himself as an agent of an FBI task force" while probing computer problems at Chapel Hill High School on May 2.

The report, which also describes actions and statements by two other police officers involved in computer crime cases, was prompted by a May 28 report in The Independent. It was released late Monday night when, in a rare move, the Chapel Hill Town Council voted to publicly disclose the investigation and related personnel decisions. In the document, Jarvies concludes that "Moore's behavior was unacceptable, was in direct violation of department policies, and is representative of detrimental personal conduct." In addition, Jarvies wrote that, "In my opinion, Moore's actions on May 2 were not consistent with federal law," and included as an addendum to his report the law against impersonating government agents.

Consequently, the report reveals, Jarvies decided to fire Moore, a 12-year veteran of the police force. But Moore pre-empted the chief, Jarvies reports: "On the morning of June 5, as I was presenting a termination notice to Moore, he tendered his resignation." IW

With this experience, Jarvies appears well suited to examine the intimidation of defense witness Elmostafa and any other complicity the DPD may have had in the activities of Mike Nifong's designated fixer - Linwood Wilson.

While the first five selections for the Durham Hoax Committee offer promise, the game plan for rounding out the committee has raised concerns.

With seven selections remaining, the City Council has decided to allow each of its seven members to make one selection, while attempting to adhere to a strict race and gender quota as proposed by pandering councilwoman Diane Catotti who faces a reelection bid this year.

The demand for diversity came from Councilwoman Diane Catotti who, last week, was the only council member to vote against launching the investigation. She said Friday that given the initial appointments, the remainder of the slate should include two white women, three black women and two black men, thus leaving the panel 50 percent black and 50 percent female.

"This case raises so many race and gender issues it's important to have that parity," she said, conceding that the panel's eventual composition might vary by "one or two" from her ideal. …

At Friday's meeting Bell began assigning members to look specifically for people fitting the gender and racial profiles Catotti suggested. H/S

In addition to demanding race and gender guidelines that would exclude any white male defense attorneys or community members from the panel, while also prohibiting the inclusion of any male or female non-black minorities, regardless of qualifications, Councilwoman Catotti has threatened to select as her representative on the committee a counselor from Durham’s Crisis Response Center.

At the council meeting, Catotti announced that she would use her selection power to name someone from the Durham rape crisis center. DiW

In fairness to Catotti, the inclusion of a rape counselor on the committee was not an original thought. While NAACP member Catotti has taken quite a bit of heat for the suggestion, multiple media reports cite Mayor Bell as the initiator of the idea.

The council wants to create a 12-member panel comprised of law enforcement experts, criminal defense attorneys and community members. Mayor Bell has suggested adding a representative from a rape crisis center to the panel. WTVD

The council also agreed with Bell's suggestion that one community appointee be a rape crisis counselor. Catotti said she'd take the lead in finding one. H/S

Regardless of whose idea it may have been initially, the inclusion of a representative from the Durham Crisis Response Center is troubling. Not only has DCRC issued a public statement rejecting AG Cooper's Declaration of Innocence, but the Center has also provided sexual assault response and investigation training to the police department the committee will be charged with investigating. Both factors undermine the stated intention to create an independent and objective review of the Durham Police Department.

From the DCRC website:

DCRC RESPONDS TO THE LACROSSE DECISION

Aurelia Sands Belle, Executive Director
April 11, 2007

Today Attorney General Roy Copper announced the decision of his office not to pursue charges in this case. It is always the prosecutor’s perogative whether or not to move forward with a case. The circumstances from which these charges arose – a party where women were hired to gratify young men – only served to denigrate men and women and further reinforce harmful stereotypes. The fact that underage drinking took place at this party highlights the reality that alcohol is a well-known aggravating factor in sexual assault, especially on college campuses.

Rape is not sex ; it is an act of violence and it dehumanizes all involved. This dehumanization is further emphasized by the differences in race, gender, and class.

DCRC offers support to all survivors of sexual trauma, recognizing the level of courage it takes them to report rape. Our concern is that this situation has made it more difficult for other victims to come forward for the help they need and the justice they deserve. According to a national study called, “Rape in America” (1) victims are reluctant to report rape for fear of being blamed by others, their families finding out about the rape, other people finding out, and their names being made public by the news media. The false reporting rate for rape is not significantly higher than the false reporting rate for any other major crimes.

The publicity around these events has served to re-traumatize some; therefore, it is important to remind the community that DCRC continues to serve past and present survivors of sexual assault through non-judgmental support and advocacy. Our services are free and confidential (in English and Spanish) and are not contingent upon victims filing police reports; however, we will assist them in this process if they so choose. Volunteers and staff are available through our 24-hour crisis line 919-403-6562.

Sexual Assault Investigation Training for Durham City Officers
Throughout the summer and fall of 2003, DCRC staff spent every Monday and Tuesday with a group of veteran officers from the Durham Police Department. Over 367 officers received 12 hours of intensive training on victim presentation, offender profiling, forensic evidence collection, and effective interview and response protocols for sexual assault crimes.

In addition to training at least 367 Durham police officers and further presenting a conflict of interest, the Center also provided instruction to another potential civil suit defendant, Duke University Medical Center.

New Hospital Response Protocols for Duke Health Systems
Throughout the fall of 2003 and spring/summer of 2004, DCRC worked with an interdisciplinary team to create a Domestic Violence Screening and Response Protocol for Duke and Durham Regional Emergency Departments. DCRC assisted in the training of all ED staff in both hospitals-over 30 training sessions for hundreds of nurses, physicians, EMS personnel, and nursing assistants. DCRC also developed an information packet for patients who disclose trauma-over 500 packets were distributed in the first year.

The City Council's adoption of both Catotti's race/gender quota and suggested nomination of a counselor from the Durham Crisis Response Center was met with immediate criticism from defense attorneys and Hoax commentators.

That stipulation drew criticism Friday from supporters of David Evans, Collin Finnerty and Reade Seligmann, the three Duke lacrosse players indicted on what Cooper determined in April were false charges of rape, sexual assault and kidnapping.

"We have the Police Department and the attorney general and Mr. Nifong in his weird [April 12] apology all confirming there wasn't a rape, and now we have this requirement that someone be from the rape crisis center?" asked Brad Bannon, a lawyer for Evans who like others on the players' defense team contends that government misconduct drove the lacrosse case. "I don't understand that."

Bannon also took issue with Catotti's contention that racial issues are central to the investigation.

"I always thought race was inappropriately injected into this case from the beginning by the district attorney with his comments," he said. "Race didn't need to be the factor it became." H/S

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Some race-obsessed Durham City Council members want strict diversity on the panel it is forming to look into the Durham Police Department’s role in the Duke lacrosse case investigation... This reminded me of what former Reagan Interior Department Secretary James Watt said almost 25 years ago that got him fired:

"He made the most odious comment of his career in defense of his widely criticized decision to authorize the sale of more than 1 billion tons of coal from federal lands in Wyoming. He argued that he was immune to criticism because members of his coal-advisory panel included “a black … a woman, two Jews, and a cripple.”

The blunt-speaking Watt was making fun of the diversity and quota obsession that was just beginning to show itself in American society, but, as we have since learned, only liberals can joke about race and diversity and get away with it. Just ask Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden...

Unfortunately, the council agreed to Mayor Bill Bell’s bonehead suggestion that a rape-crisis center member be added to the panel. Now, I’ve known a lot of rape-crisis advocates and most were a little bit crazy when it came to men. To them, every man is a potential — if not an actual — rapist. What possibly could have prompted Bell to make such a suggestion? That’s like putting a KKK member on a diversity panel, just to get the opposing view. Jon Ham

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The H-S reports that the hard quota idea came from none other than Councilwoman Diane Catotti, who remarked, "This case raises so many race and gender issues it's important to have that parity." Does it make any sense to have the one member of the Council who opposed any inquiry at all be the guiding force on such an important issue?...

This hard quota arrangement is disturbing in a number of ways. First, it fails on its own terms. According to Durham’s population figures, more than 11 percent of the city is neither white nor African-American. Under a hard-quota philosophy, that 11 percent total entitles citizens from other races to one member (8 percent) of the 12-person commission of inquiry.

Second, one of Mike Nifong’s critical contributions to the lacrosse case came in his injection of race into the case. The disgraced DA took over personal command of the investigation on March 24, 2006. That’s the same day that Cpl. David Addison began his campaign of public slandering against the lacrosse players. Then, on March 27, when Nifong joined the publicity barrage, he repeatedly played the role of racial demagogue. The police and Nifong even elected to mislead the public to highlight the alleged racial angle of the alleged crime—as when Nifong and Kammie Michael suggested that someone other than Kim Roberts made the first 911 call, thereby creating the public impression that the lacrosse players hurled racial slurs at two innocent black women who just happened to be walking by the house.

By calling for a committee evenly divided along racial lines, the Council has effectively endorsed Nifong’s reasoning that the case should be examined primarily through the prism of race....

Third, the purpose of this inquiry is not to retry the lacrosse case, although it appears that one Council member, Diane Catotti, is eager to do so. Catotti vehemently opposed even having an inquiry, and also denounced her colleague, Thomas Stith, for demanding that Mike Nifong resign.

At the council meeting, Catotti announced that she would use her selection power to name someone from the Durham rape crisis center, since the lacrosse case itself dealt with race and gender issues. Of course, there isn’t a scintilla of evidence to suggest that the police improperly treated Crystal Mangum because of her race or gender.

What’s the mindset of people who work at the Durham crisis center? On March 16, in an interview with ABC’s Law & Justice Unit, one such figure, Leah Ottinger, spoke out.

Ottinger, who had just left her job at the Durham Crisis Response Center, dismissed the possibility that Mangum’s myriad, mutually contradictory stories suggested that Mangum was lying. Assault victims, she declared, “don’t clearly remember the event right away. It’s not unusual and it doesn’t mean they are lying . . . When people have been through a trauma—a car crash is a good analogy—it can take them time to reconstruct the facts in their minds. Plus, sexual assault is uncomfortable for anyone to talk about.”

Whatever the ultimate outcome of the AG’s inquiry, Oettinger asserted, “that doesn’t mean a crime didn’t happen that night.” DiW

While the race/gender quota and the inclusion of a rape counselor from an organization with a vested interest in the outcome of the investigation offer cause for concern, the City Council's indecision over granting subpoena power to the committee and apparent unwillingness to exercise their own lawful power of subpoena to compel testimony and production of records threaten to make the investigation an exercise in futility.

"I think it's important for us to be able to get to the truth," Councilman Mike Woodard said. "And if subpoenas and putting people under oath helps us get to that, then I think it's something we need to give this committee the power to do." WRAL

Another focus of Friday's council discussion was whether the committee would have the power to subpoena witnesses and compel sworn testimony.

Durham's charter specifies that both City Council and the manager have the power to investigate city affairs and in the process subpoena witnesses, administer oaths and force the production of documents. What is unclear is if they can delegate that authority to the committee.

"I don't know if we could give the committee that power," Assistant City Attorney Karen Sindelar said. "My initial inclination is no."

Council members nonetheless asked Sindelar to have city attorneys look into the matter and offer a formal opinion.

The worry is that without subpoena power and sworn testimony, prospective witnesses would be free to refuse to testify or even to lie.

"You're going to get to the truth a little more quickly and clearly if you have subpoena power and can put people under oath," Bannon said. "If there isn't any consequence for lying, you can't have as much faith in the process as you can if a person is under oath and knows if he lies he's going to be subject to the laws of perjury." H/S

The inability of the Sykes Administrative Review Committee to compel testimony prohibited the investigation into the wrongful convictions of Darryl Hunt from reaching a definite conclusion on whether Hunt was framed.

An answer to that question may never be known, even after a panel of volunteers investigated for more than a year what went wrong in the case. The panel, called the Sykes Administrative Review Committee, put their findings into the report, which includes interviews with former police officials and other witnesses related to the case.

The report, made public last night, makes no explicit statement that Hunt was framed. It wasn't possible to come to a definitive conclusion on that, City Manager Lee Garrity said last week, because the panel was hamstrung in its ability to talk to people. It had no subpoena power and therefore had to rely on people volunteering to talk about the case. W/S Journal

In Winston-Salem, most of the major players, including several police investigators and all but one of the prosecutors, in the wrongful conviction of Darryl Hunt refused to testify before the committee. The list of uncooperative witnesses included: Tom Keith, Forsyth County District Attorney; Judge William Reingold, former Forsyth County Assistant District Attorney, Eric Saunders, chief Forsyth County Assistant District Attorney; Don Tisdale, former Forsyth County ADA and original Hunt prosecutor; and Dean Bowman, Assistant Attorney General in the special prosecutor's office and prosecutor at Hunt's second trial. In addition to the former and current members of the District Attorney's office who refuse to testify, the following Winston Salem police officers also declined to help the committee uncover the truth: Det. Earl Biggers, Cpt. Gid Cornatzer, Det. Carter Crump, Sgt. Furman Mason, former Police Chief Joe Masten, Sgt. Jerry Matthews, Cpt. Mike McCoy, Det. Bill Miller, Polygrapher Barry Owens, Lt. Jerry Raker, Det. Bobby Spillman, Sgt. David Walker, Det. Mike Wilkins, and Det. Richard Nifong. Dan Stone and Brenda Dew Bissette of the State Bureau of Investigation also refused to cooperate.

If the Durham Hoax Committee faces the same impediment, similar results can be expected. Without the power to compel testimony from District Attorney Nifong and his accomplices, the committee, regardless of its composition, will inevitably fail to fulfill its assumed charge to identify the failures of the Durham Police Department and make recommendations designed to ensure that a similar injustice does not befall equally innocent men and women in the future.

Mayor Bell's Memo to City Council

Memo To: Durham City Council
From: William V. 'Bill" Bell, Mayor
Subject: Durham City Council Third Party Duke Lacrosse Investigative Committee
Attachment: Resume of Attorney Willis P. Whichard
Date: May 30, 2007

Suggested Committee Charge: The committee is charged with performing an independent review of the conduct of the Durham Police Department and the Durham County District Attorney's action (in as much as it possibly can include the DA's actions) in the prosecution of charges of rape and other offenses brought against three Duke Lacrosse players. It is to review documents, interview or take testimony from participants on both sides of the prosecution, and perform such other tasks as it deems necessary or appropriate. In due course, as expeditiously as feasible but without the restrictive constraints of arbitrary deadlines, it shall present to the City Council a report of its findings and conclusions.

The purpose is, insofar as possible, to ascertain and report the truth about these now terminated prosecutions; and, if unconstitutional or otherwise improper procedures were followed, to assist the Department in avoiding similar improprieties in the future, The sole objective is a properly functioning justice system: one that discovers and appropriately punishes the perpetrators of anti-social conduct that our lawmakers have defined as criminal, but that does so in a manner best calculated to produce reliable results and within the procedural boundaries established by our democratic constitutional system.

Suggested Committee Size: The committee shall be comprised of: 9 - 12 members including the committee chairperson. The members shall reflect diversity by race and gender as equally as possible. None of the members should have had any relation or association with any former or existing members of the Duke Lacrosse team, the accuser, witnesses or have any ties to Duke University or NCCU which may be perceived by the Durham City Council as prohibiting them from making a fair, objective and impartial investigation.

The committee shall establish its own rules and procedures for operations. All committee meetings shall follow the open meetings policy of the Durham City Council.

Suggested categories of members: The committee shall be divided as equally as possible
among the three categories of representatives as follows:

1. 3 - 4 Law enforcement officials (i.e. Policemen, District Attorney, etc,)
2. 3 - 4 Criminal Defense Attorneys.
3. 3 - 4 Community Persons

Suggested Chairperson of the committee: Attorney Willis P. Whichard

Latest Suggested date for having the committee appointed and the holding of its first meeting: Week of June 18. 2007.

Suggested time for the committee to complete its investigation: 30 - 60 days from the date of its first official meeting.

Suggested Budget: A budget proposal shall by prepared by the committee and presented to the Durham City Council within two weeks of its first meeting. The Durham City Council shall make the final budget determination within two weeks after having been presented the proposed budget.

Staff support for the committee shall be provided by The Durham City Government from the offices of the city manager, city attorney and city clerk as appropriately determined by the city council as a result of recommendations from the committee, or else suggested by the committee or the Durham City Council. In any event the Durham City Council reserves the final right to determine how the staff support shall be provided to the committee.

BIOGRAPHICAL DATA
WILLIS P. WHICHARD

Born in Durham, NC, May 24, 19A0. Resident of Durham until August 2002, when moved to Chatham County, N.C. Part-time residence in Hayesville, N.G., since 1979.

FAMILY

Father (deceased) native of Pitt County; served as teacher and principal for 36 years.

Mother (deceased) native of Clay County: taught for 21 years and worked for county hospital for 24 years.

Married Leona Paschal of Chatham County June 4, 1961. Two daughters: Jennifer W. Ritz, born August 7, 1968; Ida W.-Siikanat, born November 12, 1376. Six grandchildren: Chamberlain Whichard Silkenat, born September 29,1996; Georgia Coleman Ritz, born December 24, 1997; Dawson Gflbert Silkenat, barn May 11, 1999; Evelyn Grace Ritz, born February 13, 2000; Thessaly Larissa Silkenat, born May 7, 2001 and Cordia Franklin Ritz, born April 20, 2002.

EDUCATION

Durham City Schools (1946-58).

A.B. in History, University of NC at Chapel Hill, 1952. Member of Phi Beta Kappa, Order of the Golden Fleece, Order of the Grail and other honorary societies.

J.D. (Juris Doctor), University of NC School of Law, 1965. Board of Editors, NC Law Review. Order of the Coif, highest scholastic honorary society for law students. Phi Delta Phi legal fraternity.

L.L.M. (Master of Laws) in Judicial Process, University of Virginia, 1984.

S.J.D. (Doctor of Judicial Science), University of Virginia, 1994.

RELIGIOUS AFFILIATION

Member, Mt. Carmel Baptist Church, Chapel Hill, N.C.

POLITICAL AFFILIATION

Affiliated with Democratic Party since 1959. Served as President of University of North Carolina Young Democratic Clubs. Member of group that founded College Federation of Young Democrats.

MILITARY

Enlisted man, Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, NC Army National Guard, Raleigh, NC. 1966w72. Life member, NC National Guard Association (Judge Advocate, 1972-73; Chairman, Constitution and By-Laws Committee, 1973-74; member Legislative Committee, 1974-76).

PROFESSIONAL

Law Clerk to Justice (later Chief Justice) William H. Bobbitt, NC Supreme Court, 1965-66.

Practicing attorney with Durham, NC, law firm Powe, Porter, Alphin & Whichard, P.A., 1966-80; with Moore & Van Allen PLLG 2006 - .

Dean and Professor of Law, Campbell University 1999-2006.

Instructor of Business Law, Duke University School of Business Administration, summer and fall 1978; instructor for American Institute of Banking law course, 1972.

Adjunct professor, University of North Carolina School of Law, 1986-1999.

Member of American Bar Association, NC Bar Association (Vice-President 1983-84 and 2001-02) and Durham County Bar Association, UNC Law Alumni Association (President, 1978-79; First Vice-President, 1977-75; Second Vice-President, 1978-79; Board of Directors, 1971-73; 1979-82).

PUBLIC SERVICE

NC General Statutes Commission, 1969-73.

NC House of Representatives, 1970-74. NC Senate, 1974-80.

Judge, NC Court of Appeals, 1980-86. Associate Justice, NC Supreme Court, 1986-98 (Note: Justice Whichard is the only person in the history of North Carolina who has served in both houses of the state legislature and on both of the state's appellate courts.)

Chair and member of numerous committees and commissions, including chairing Senate Committee on Courts and Judicial Districts (1975-76) and serving on Judicial Planning Committee of Governor's Crime Commission (1977-80); member, N.C. State-Federal Judicial Relations Council, 1986-98 (chair, 1988-89,1997-98); N.C. Courts Commission, 1994-98.

Comments from Attorney Willis P. Whichard

Re: Third Party independent investigative committee.

In one sense this committee is about the past. Its function is to attempt to ascertain and report the truth about events that are now history. In a broader, more significant sense, however, it is about the future. Its overriding purpose is not just to identify any improprieties or mistakes that may have occurred in the handling of the lacrosse players` cases, but to assist local law enforcement in avoiding such in the future.

I look forward to working with the mayor, the City Council and the committee in this endeavor.

May 31, 2007

Durham City Councilman Thomas Stith Calls For Nifong To Resign

From the Snooze Room:

Both City Councilman Thomas Stith and law professor James Coleman said Nifong should resign, and agreed that Durham police have some explaining to do.

Nifong's resignation "would be in his best interest and in the best interest of the community," Stith said. "We've talked about regrouping and healing and that would be a way to do it, for the district attorney to remove himself from office."

"How can you not [resign], after the attorney general has said that what you did was wholly without basis?" said Coleman, who led Duke University's investigation of the lacrosse team and early on called for Nifong to hand off the case to the attorney general's office.

...

Mayor Bill Bell said he thought people in Durham "are going to be accepting of" Cooper's decision "and will try to move forward."

...

"Bell wouldn't join Stith and Coleman in calling for Nifong's resignation. He said the State Bar's disciplinary process should be allowed to unfold.

"I have the same sentiment about this process that the DA is going through that the defendants were going through in this trial," Bell said. "People are presumed innocent. In Nifong's case, I'm satisfied to await the outcome of the process. He will be having his day in court before the bar."

The false accusations have "been unfortunate for the persons involved, [and] the families," Bell said. "I have a lot of empathy for that."