Day of Reckoning Arrives for Lacrosse Case DA

Jun 12, 06:21 AM

Current Headlines: By Anne Blythe, The News & Observer, Raleigh, N.C.

Jun. 12--Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong, lambasted for his handling of the Duke lacrosse case, goes before the N.C. State Bar today to begin his battle against possible career-ending professional misconduct charges. Court TV will broadcast the trial live. WRAL.com and the WRAL NewsChannel also will carry the hearing live beginning at 10 a.m.

The case will unfold at the N.C. Court of Appeals building, 1 W. Morgan St. in downtown Raleigh. Some seats have been set aside for the public.

WHAT'S AT STAKE?

Nifong faces ethical and professional misconduct charges over his handling of the lacrosse case.

He is accused of making inflammatory statements, withholding evidence favorable to the defense and then lying about it to judges and other court officials.

WHO MIGHT BE CALLED?

Key lacrosse case investigators, a sexual assault nurse at Duke Hospital, the head of the private lab that performed DNA testing and Nifong himself are expected to be called to testify.

The former Duke lacrosse players who were exonerated by state Attorney General Roy Cooper in April or their families are expected to be at the hearing.

WHO SITS IN JUDGMENT?

The role of judge and jury belongs to three members of the Disciplinary Hearing Commission, which is composed of 12 lawyers appointed by the bar and eight non-lawyers appointed by the governor and General Assembly. The three-member panel will conduct the trial, find the facts, apply the law and decide disciplinary sanctions, if any.

On the panel are: Chairman Lane Williamson, a Charlotte lawyer; Sharon Alexander, a lawyer from Hendersonville, and R. Mitchell Tyler, a non-lawyer from Lake Waccamaw.

WHO'S UP FIRST?

The State Bar, represented by Counsel Katherine Jean and Doug Brocker, a private lawyer who used to work for the bar, will present its case against Nifong.

The proceeding is expected to last four days.

Attorneys David Freedman and Dudley Witt, two Winston-Salem lawyers representing Nifong, will be able to cross-examine witnesses the bar calls.

The hearing will be in two parts. The first is to determine whether the charges have merit. If the panel decides they do, a second phase determines the punishment.

A DECISION THIS WEEK?

The panel could announce the outcome this week or take the matter into further deliberation. But typically, the outcome is announced immediately.

WHAT PUNISHMENTS?

The Disciplinary Hearing Commission can issue reprimands, censure a lawyer, suspend his license for up to five years or disbar him so he cannot practice law. It cannot remove a public official from office.

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