I couldn't agree more.Much as they might wish it were otherwise, this DA's race is a referendum on the Duke lacrosse case.
If Nifong wins, how can he do anything but take this case to trial?
That is what's so scary.
At this paper, and in this column, my colleagues and I have written plenty about prosecutors with tunnel vision, who press forward with flawed cases at any cost.
Here's a chance for voters to say, "Not here. Not in Durham." Durham voters can set this case before new eyes.
If only they would.
Monday, October 30, 2006
Sheehan on the Election
Ruth Sheehan has another great column in today's N&O, urging Durham voters to rise to the challenge and remove Nifong from office through the only viable option available: a vote for Lewis Cheek. Her conclusion:
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How can the voters of Durham not rise up and rush to the polls to vote for Cheek? It is beyond comprehension if they don't. The supporters of Nifong need to mindful that they too "could be fonged".
It is reassuring to know that one person who assumed that the Duke players were guilty has been persuaded otherwise. It is reassuring that someone who totally backed Nifong has changed her mind.
It is very simple. The FBI steps in a drills the false accuser. They drill the DPD and get the rest of the notes, tapes and emials that Nifong has never handed over to the defense. We can put an end to this once and for all. The falsely accused have passed lie detector tests, Kim says she'll take one. Now lets have the FBI give one to Nifong, DPD and most of all the FA. In a metter of a few hours the truth will be exposed. We have the technology, we know the FA has lied, Nifing has lied and the DPD has lied. The Constituional rights of the accused have been trampled, lets get to the truth. The FEDS must step in and end this debacle once and for all. The Governor of NC should be thrown out of office with Nifong.
Voters should indeed rise up and rush to the polls to defeat Nifong. There is, however, that big elephant sitting in the room and that's the black vote. These voters think like a group and are intimidated by their leadership if they step out of line. That's the second criminal atmosphere that has developed around this case.
If Durham elects Nifong, it says a lot about the intelligence and character of all Durhamites.
This Durhamite supports RNVC and is grateful to Ms. Sheehan for finally stating in no uncertain terms her support for our candidate.
Oh, and to the above, not all Durhamites need to be tarred and feathered. Some of us are working here to try to give a big reality check to those deeply misguided souls (if they have them) supporting Malicious Mikey.
Durham Mommy
If that N&O poll is any indication (and there is no reason to think it's not accurate), Durham County is gearing to do just that-electing Nifong as their DA.
This election reminds me of the people of the District of Columbia electing Marion Barry to be mayor again after he had served time in prison after being busted for drugs. If they were that stupid to elect him again after all his shenanigans, they deserved to have him as their mayor.
Nifong’s Exit Strategy: Becoming the Lead Investigator
If Nifong cannot represent the prosecution because he is the lead investigator, then someone else must. Any fair-minded barrister would quickly review the facts of this case, the procedural misconduct and ultimately dismiss the case.
Could Nifong be this ingenious?
RM PAM
Why wouldn't the voters of Durham elect Nifong? They are overwhelmingly black. All they are trying to do is turn the tables on whitey and they are using Nifong to assist.
Blacks cannot participate in the political or judicial process without seeking vengence for what they perceive to be 400 years of oppression. So, now its whitey's turn. Let him rot in jail. The facts do not matter. Fairness does not matter. OJ was an example of this and now the LAX players.
And if you think Nifong is an idiot for taking this case to trial, you should probably think again. There is no doubt that if this case is tried in Durham and if there is more than one black on the jury, Nifong will get a hung jury. If its all black, he'll even get a conviction. This is why he's not backing down. This is why he proceeds in the face of what appears to but impossible odds. He knows his audience. And in the end, they'll deliver.
I will have to agree with you, 10:22.
Why wouldn't Nifong take this to trial? I think he is guaranteed at least a hung jury. And I imagine he knows this full well.
durham is only half black but the question you really need to ask is why do so many whites back nifong as well, especially after the 60 minutes piece. oh and don't forget the hispanic percentages were almost the same as the blakc percentages in the poll.
Because obviously a lot of the white Durham locals are resentful of Duke students too; some are left-wing politically-correct lunatics who still want whites convicted of a crime against a black; some are anti-Catholic (Finnerty); some are anti-Jewish (Seligmann); some are just anti-male; some aren't educated enough to understand DNA; and some of them don't want to look like dopes for their earlier potbanging.
Citizens of Durham seem to particularly dislike outsiders. Of course all three players Nifong indicted are not NC natives. The one guy the accuser identified in April 4 line up who was NC native was not indicted.
I found the poll disheartening. It may be skewed by leaving likely Cheek supporters (cell phone users) out but even so, over 40% still expecting to vote for Nifong is a bit mind boggling. I expected a core of bigoted and anti-Duke folk to continue supporting him, but I expected the percentages to be reversed.
I does make me think that no matter how much the defense lawyers crush the prosecution and its witnesses, a couple of jurors would hang the jury just to show that "historical white privilege" cannot "get away" with stuff.
Well, of course, the N&O poll is not a good sign. The accused are the "Yankees." Apparently "Yankees" are disliked in NC, so many Durhamites are not going to be too upset by Nifong indicting the three Yankees. Perhaps if Nifong indicted a good old Southern boy, it would have been different. Please also notice that the accuser pointed at someone else (I believe NC native) during the April 4th line up. That player was not indicted, and Gottlieb never asked the accuser how sure she was about him. Please consider Gottlieb asked the accuser how sure she was about Dave and Reade, but not how sure she was about that other “suspect.” It is clear that defense is not going to have an easy time defending the three players in Durham NC, despite all the exculpatory evidence, and the obvious lack of evidence pointing to guilt.
Certainly the factors posters have listed here may be influencing Durham voters--but it's also possible some of them may not want to vote for someone who has already said he will not take office. There's an old saying--better the devil you know than the one you don't know. It might be pretty hard, no matter if you were disappointed in the handling of the Duke case, to go out and vote for an unknown alternative.
Please consider that almost half of DAs in NC were appointed by the Governor. The so-called vote for the unknown is simply a vote to give the Governor a chance to appoint a DA. So, that excuse that Durhamites are concerned about having a Governor to appoint a DA is pretty lame. Why weren’t citizens of NC concerned when Governor Easley or his predecessor appointed almost half of DAs in the state of NC?
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