Kobe Bryant Court Case

[Shinmaru]

Not sure if this is international news, but it's pretty big news here in the U.S., so I decided to make a thread on it.

On Friday, Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers was charged with felony sexual assault (i.e. rape). He is the latest in a long line of athletes who have gotten in trouble with the law. Very little facts have been released about this case. What is known is that Kobe himself has admitted to adultry, but he claims that it was consensual. I'm not sure exactly how, but the 19 year old girl claims that Kobe forced himself upon her. If Kobe is convicted he could face either four years to life in prison or 20 years to life probation.

These facts are likely the only straight facts we will get in the case. A very good point was made on a radio show early this morning that I was listening to, and it was that both sides will likely exaggerate their sides of the story in order to prove their case. Basically the only people that will likely know the entire truth are Kobe and the 19 year old girl.

Of course, this will probably end up being a very high profile trial (if it ends up going to trial) and it will probably end up being the most high profile athlete-related trial since the O.J. Simpson case. With all this coverage, I'm sure that there will be conflicting views. For instance, will Kobe get unfair treatment? Remember, unfair treatment can go both ways. For example, will Kobe be treated as if he is "above the law" because he is a celebrity? Personally, I find this very unlikely, because the D.A. in Colorado has said time and time again that he will treat this like any other sexual assault case. Then, there is the opposite side of the spectrum; will Kobe be condemned because he is yet another athlete in trouble with the law? I have already heard that there are protesters that have already passed judgement upon him and are ready to picket Lakers games at Staples Center if Kobe plays basketball in the NBA next year.

Do I think Kobe is guilty? I don't know and I'm not willing to pass judgement right now, because I think that would be unfair to both the 19 year old woman (who's identity has not been revealed, at least not to my knowledge) and Kobe Bryant. I think that it's unfair to pass judgement on either person without fully knowing and understanding the facts of the case.

There are a lot of things that are irrelevant in this case. There are a lot of people presuming Kobe innocent based on the squeaky-clean image that he has presented throughout his career. That is completely and totally irrelevant and has nothing to do with the case; if he was squeaky-clean, he wouldn't have comitted adultry. There are also people, as I stated earlier, that have presumed Kobe guilty because he is yet another pro athlete in trouble with the law. This is also irrelevant; the image of other people and the person in question should not be taken into account when you are dealing with a case that is supposed to be [b]completely and totally fact based.[/b]

There are most likely some items and such that I have forgotten to mention. If somebody else has information and/or opinions pertaining to this case, or this subject in general, I'd like to see it.

[Epitome]

I do not think Bryant is guilty but I do think that he did have an affair with this woman. He has admitted to have mutual wanted sex with this woman and his wife is furious. He has just had a kid with his wife and I cant think of what she is going through. Also, I think that he should be charged with sexual assault because the girl was only 19. I had just heard about this on my way home from Orlando. He used to be one of my favorite basketball players, but now, I hate him, even if it wasnt rape... He has a wife and that is totally wrong in my opinon.

[Guest dayday]

Yeah, I heard of that case. It's been going around for a while. I say he's guilty. There's no other possibilty. I'm not jumping to conclusions or anything, but that's what I think. And going off topic a little. My cousin and brother think they saw him down by our house one day. He had stop and stared at us and I left because I didn't feel right. They said it was him but I don't think so. I live in a little half deserted town. On the least populated road.

[Shinmaru]

Regardless of whether or not Kobe is guilty, his image will defintely be tarnished due to this case. He has already admitted to adultry and he'll definetely lose a lot of fans and credibility due to that. Whether or not his image can be rehabilitated remains to be seen.

There's something that I find interesting, though. Last year when Allen Iverson was charged with breaking and entering an apartment and weapons possessions (I think that's what he was charged with), there wasn't much hesitation by people in saying that Iverson was guilty. However, when the facts were revealed, it turned out that he was totally innocent. It just goes to show you how wrong the public can be at times and how the public uses someone's image when they're judging someone's guilty.

EDIT: Another thing that I think is interesting is that experts say that something like this will probably increase Kobe's merchandising. A high profile case like this could get Kobe's name on the news and in the papers every night and sell things with his name attached to it. I've seen this happen a few times, so it's a sound theory. Of course, that doesn't mean that I agree with the principles behind it.

[OtakuSennen]

Well, when I first heard about the accusation I really didn't believe it. Kobe Bryant seemed too wholesome to do anything like that.. But after I saw his comments last night on the news (At least I think it was last night) and how he admitted to doing that, I don't know what to think anymore.. I thought he would be let off the hook, 'cause I thought a guy like him wouldn't do that, even if it was consensual, but now that he admitted to it.. I don't know if I think he's guilty or innocent.

[Semjaza]

He'll lose very few fans to this, I think. There are so many examples of sports, political or entertainment figures doing things like this or worse... and people just get over it. The big Kobe fans are all sticking up for him, general people don't even know what's going on... I don't think anyone really thinks he did this, and everything I've read and heard so far makes a lot of the case sound totally baseless. Especially reports from the police station around that area.

I think the strangest thing to come out of this is that I've learned that Kobe's middle name is Bean. It was on the lawsuit heh.

[Change]

He will probably get off, and this event will actualy enhance his celebrity.

[Dragon Warrior]

Well, the deal is, any girl could just say she was molested by a celebrity just to get famous or get lots of money just to shut them up. That may not be the case in this one since Kobe admits he had "did it" with her, but I still think she may be lying. You know Kobe. He's one of those people who are good for it. He may have married an 18 year old before she was even out of high school (which my Dad thinks is a big part of this), but I still don't see Kobe doing such a thing.

[Charles]

This will develop into another case of "He said/she said." Wait--what am I talking about? It's already at that point. And who would expect otherwise? No one was in the room, save for Bryant and the alleged victim. It's a fact that there was sexual penetration. But, the question remains: Can this 19-year old girl [i]prove[/i] that Bryant raped or assaulted her?

This is a case very unlike the Mike Tyson rape situation. With Bryant, you have to ask yourself: "Does this really surprise me?" And, of course, based on the Bryant's pedigree (he's young, married, has a clean record, and is fortunate enough to have enjoyed a wealthy upbringing)--this probably surprises many sports fans.

With Tyson--when he was charged with rape at the height of his career, were you really surprised? Most likely not. The point of drawing comparisons between two fundamentally different situations is that this was also a case of "he said/she said." Tyson's attorney's played up on that--and it didn't work. He went to jail for three years.

Will Bryant face a similar fate? It's doubtful, to say the least. For one thing, Tyson's attorneys had to take the case on with an attitude similar to the effect of "How could anyone shut themselves into a room alone with this man?"

Bryant's attorneys won't have to balance their case on such a rickety defensive scheme. The suspicion on his character just isn't there. So, regardless of whether he actually did it or not might not even matter. I don't see him being convicted.

[Guest Mystik]

Kobe Bryant is innocent, he is a role model for kids and he knows that. He is happily married to his wife, he is famous. Why would he risk his entire career, and possibly his entire life by raping someone when he has a wife at home? I'm telling you, if he gets convicted of rape then I'ma need a good heavy sand bag to punch. I just don't think Kobe could have done it. And God knows as well as everyone on this entire ******* planet, that Kobe Bryant has unlimited amounts of money to spend on the case. Hell, he could make it drag on for 2 years no problem, and end up winning whether he did it or not. But that isn't the point. The point is that the woman wants a little bit of attention so she says Kobe raped her, which is complete bullshirt.

[Manic Webb]

We were talking about cases like this in my Mass Communication class just a couple weeks ago.

The media will present the case to the public, news-watchers will make their conclusions, and people will argue about whether or not he's guilty. The problem is, the case hasn't even gone to trial yet. The name and history of the allegedly raped woman hasn't even been revealed yet. There is absolutely no evidence proving or disproving either side.

In short, nobody knows but Kobe and the woman. Our guesses are based off of nothing but our ways of thinking and unfounded stereotypes we have about Kobe, women who point the finger, and atheletes in general.

The problem with this is that the public has already come to its own conclusion before a jury can be formed. Once a jury can be assembled for the actual trial, each member of the jury will already have his or her own theory of what really happened, and it's going to be difficult for both the Prosecutor and Defendant to change their minds.

So I can't really say whether or not I believe he's guilty or innocent. I have no proof.

[Transtic Nerve]

naturally a case involving something that happens all to often in this country is made headline news cause it's a rich guy. There's two senarios here... either he really did it, which I wouldn't doubt since the guy thinks he's GOD and is completely narsisistic, or the girls is being a typical money grumbing whore and trying to get money out of the guy, which usually happens via outside settlement (ie: Michale Jackson case)

Either way, they are both losers. Him for being who he is and her for even associating herself with a complete arshole.

[Harry]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by mirai_torankusu [/i]
[B]Regardless of whether or not Kobe is guilty, his image will defintely be tarnished due to this case. He has already admitted to adultry and he'll definetely lose a lot of fans and credibility due to that. Whether or not his image can be rehabilitated remains to be seen.
[/B][/QUOTE]
Are you joking? Athletes commit crimes all the time and people rarely care. His fan base isn't going to disappear because of this.

[Raiha]

[color=royalblue]I think it's terribly embarassing, what people will do just to get a little free cash. That's like one of our females going up to some guy, seducing him, or even pretending to, and then saying: "Oh my god, this bastard raped me! But I'll forget it if there are large dollar signs thrown in my direction."

Please. THis idiot woman......if you could call her that, obviously knew what she was doing. She's 19, that's above the age of consetn. She was also a nobody until now. If she wants money, I have a sick feeling she'll get it. But if she wants fame, she'll be contending with a fanbase that's been built up by good character and excellent sportsmanship.

Put simply: She's in need of quick cash.[/color]

[Shinmaru]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Harry [/i]
[B]Are you joking? Athletes commit crimes all the time and people rarely care. His fan base isn't going to disappear because of this. [/B][/QUOTE]

Yes, but you have to remember that Kobe's fan base isn't like the fan base for an Allen Iverson, Rasheed Wallace, Mike Tyson, etc. Kobe never had a "thug" image or whatever. He was always seen as a clean cut individual with high moral values and respect for everyone. I don't think that his fan base would disappear totally (because there will always be people who respect him for his basketball ability), but there will definetely be people who lose respect for him as a person, if only until everyone forgets about this case.

Besides, I would hardly say that people "rarely care." Just look at all the publicity this is getting. The case hasn't even gone to court yet! There hasn't even been an arraignment! Just imagine what it'll be like if and when this case actually goes to trial.

[Harry]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by mirai_torankusu [/i]
[B]Yes, but you have to remember that Kobe's fan base isn't like the fan base for an Allen Iverson, Rasheed Wallace, Mike Tyson, etc. Kobe never had a "thug" image or whatever. He was always seen as a clean cut individual with high moral values and respect for everyone. I don't think that his fan base would disappear totally (because there will always be people who respect him for his basketball ability), but there will definetely be people who lose respect for him as a person, if only until everyone forgets about this case.

Besides, I would hardly say that people "rarely care." Just look at all the publicity this is getting. The case hasn't even gone to court yet! There hasn't even been an arraignment! Just imagine what it'll be like if and when this case actually goes to trial. [/b][/quote]
I just don't see a mass of people not liking him because he is being tried for sexual assault. I'll admit that I'm not a huge basketball fan but from everyone in the past the only person that really loses his fan base was OJ and that's the only thing that came to mind.

[Shinmaru]

I still think he'll lose some fans but not as many as he could have. At least, he won't lose fans to the OJ Simpson degree (is anyone really a fan of OJ anymore?) Really, I doubt he'll be convicted because the evidence that I've seen so far is flimsy at best and both sides will go out of their way to dramatize their sides of the story. The difference is that Kobe is rich enough to hire the best lawyers that money can buy. Will he do that? I don't know but it's a possibility. If he's not convicted, then there's a chance that the public might forgive him because he's already admitted to adultry, a step that he didn't have to take.

Of course, we'll probably never know whether or not he's guilty.

[pbfrontmanvdp]

Seriously i could care less what he does with his life. If hes guilty or not, it doesnt really concern me. He already has more money than i will ever imagine of possessing, and even if he is found guilty he will only be in jail for the minumim of 4 years. Im going to say that he only had an affair though, i dont believe Bryant is that stupid to rape someone. Of course this will affect him financially, but he already has enough money so it doesnt matter anyway. LoL the only thing im concerned about is the rookie cards i have of him now there going to go down lol.

I have another question about this as well. What i cant understand is how much athletes get paid in professtional sports. Compared to doctors, i cant see how they get paid sometimes 10 times the amount. Doctors/scientists should be the ones getting paid millions of dollars for founding new information or cures for certain diseases. Think about it, a doctor is probably able to play basketball(not as good), but is a basketball player able to perform open heart surgery. I dont think so. What im trying to get at is athletes are no wheres near worth as much as money as other occupations.

Plus you never here many doctors being on the news for sex scandels. You always hear of athletes being on the news with situations like these. I personally dont care what he does with his life outside of basketball. I just hate how this is going to be on the news now with millions of "up to date news on the Kobe Byrant case" for months. Its to funny that they get so much publicity even when they do something against the law. I just think its sad.

[Shinmaru]

It's a little off topic, but I'll answer your question anyway. The reason why pro athletes (at least in the four main sports in the U.S. - basketball, baseball, football, and hockey) get paid so much is that they work in entertainment. Like it or not, the most lucrative jobs money-wise in the U.S. are in entertainment. Lots of money can be made off of these athletes and thus, they can also command high salaries. But don't be fooled into thinking that all athletes in sports get paid ludacris amounts of money. I doubt you'll be finding many million dollar athletes in the U.S. outside of basketball, baseball, football, and hockey because most other sports don't even come near those four in popularity in the U.S.

[pbfrontmanvdp]

LoL i only meant basically those sports i should have been more specific and said the ones that get televised all the time. Like swimming, volleyball, diving, sports like that i think are fine they dont get paid that much money, but its so messed up that athelets in the sports of basketball, hockey, football, baseball, golf, get paid so much. I know its in the entertainment business, but its just so unfair that other occupations that actually uses the use of someones brain doesnt offer as much money. Im an athlete myself but i dont do it for the money. These athletes that even play in professional sports for basketball and whatever dont even play from the heart anymore, its basically just for the money.

For Kobe Bryant to do something like this just is just bizarre. He has so much going for him and he already has a wife so why would someone of his status want to do something like that. I bust my *** during the summer for my summer job just to make a percent of what he makes and he does something idiot and has an affair with another women. He's supposed to also be a role model for kids and dont think that parents are thinking about how this may affect their children. Im not saying that it will, but what he did was really stupid. Why ruin the perfect life he has and go and possibly rape a girl.

On the other hand it might just be that the girl is doing that for publicity, but as of right now i have to go on the other side cause it has happen to much with other sports stars in the past.

[Shinmaru]

To be honest, I don't know why athletes do half the stupid things that they do. Some of them probably think that they can get away with it. Some of them might have been doing these things since they've been growing up (a lot of athletes, especially in the NBA and NFL, grew up dirt poor and didn't exactly have the best of childhoods). But from what little I know about Kobe's life, this isn't really the case. He has both a loving mother and father, grew up upper middle class, and got a good education.

Pretty much everybody that has anything to do with sports is shocked that it's Kobe Bryant that's in this situation. Before this, I thought that Kobe Bryant should be one of the guys that the NBA should use to bolster its image. Guys like Kobe, Tracy McGrady, Grant Hill, Vince Carter, people who were hard working, clean-cut individuals. But after this...I don't know what to think about any of these pro athletes. Everyone was certainly wrong about Kobe.

But you have to remember that everyone was basing this on what they saw when Kobe was in the public eye. Kobe Bryant is an intensly private individual, so I don't think that many people knew who he really was and what he's really like. Certainly, after this incident, I find myself not knowing who he is at all.

[Kent]

I hate over paid athletes.

I really am not a fan of the more popular sports... football, baseball, basketball, etc.

However, I do not believe that kobe raped this un-named woman.

I believe the woman got with him as any other woman would when trying to seduce a man in kobe's shoes and then she turned on him big time.

Flat out... I dont buy it.

This woman is a liar in my eyes and must prove through some means that the sexual interaction between her and kobe was not assualt.

I dont not believe that kobe should be burdened with proving he did not rape her.

(its almost like reporting a theft... you must prove something was stolen before anything can be done.)

Why should we take her word for it in this situation over his.

This is he said, she said.

I believe him... (frankly, kobe bryant doesnt need to rape anyone, regardless of having a wife, he is as famus as they come and just as rich too... Ive got a feeling he doesnt have trouble with the ladies... well, until now.)

Anyway, so yeah, I think he is not guilty of sexual assualt... adultury on the other hand... *throws the book at kobe*

[Emme888]

That rapist deserves to get the book thrown at him, If he did it I mean....but he is after all married. What a scum of a role model. What is he teaching all the lil kids who look up to him, throw his butt in jail. Teach him a lesson, that'll make sure that he keeps all his business in his pants, and not out and about with it so freely.

Book' em ...

[Guest Altron Gundam]

Being a basketball player myself, obviously not at his level, draws my curiousity to this story. Since 1996 Kobe Bryant has been a squeaky clean player steering clear of the Damon Stoudamire's or Shawn Kemp's of the league. Hell, last season, Allen Iverson got arrested on false charges and he's rep isn't as clean as Bryant's.

Its always the same. Some gold-digger halfwit looking for money. If she says its against her will then why go up to the room in the first place? Room service? LOL, not likely.

The guy has a family, endorsement deals, and his whole reputation on the line. I find it unlikely that he would do something that stupid to damage that like throw his life away by raping a girl.

Bottom line is, [b]GOLD DIGGER[/b].

[Raiha]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Emme888 [/i]
[B]That rapist deserves to get the book thrown at him, If he did it I mean....but he is after all married. What a scum of a role model. What is he teaching all the lil kids who look up to him, throw his butt in jail. Teach him a lesson, that'll make sure that he keeps all his business in his pants, and not out and about with it so freely.

Book' em ... [/B][/QUOTE] [COLOR=royalblue]The rapist. So you condem him without solid evidence and proof. Right......like 82 % of the world watching this. The rest either don't care, or have a pretty good idea of what really happened. Teach him a lesson.........right.......like he won't do it again. Four years in jail are hardly a lesson.[/COLOR]