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CNN Live Today

Kobe Bryant Case

Aired October 15, 2003 - 11:01   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: We want to get some more insight now on the legal wrangling and the media frenzy surrounding the Kobe Bryant case.
Joining us from Glendale, California, "Celebrity Justice" executive producer, Harvey Levin, a regular contributor to this program.

Harvey, good morning.

HARVEY LEVIN, "CELEBRITY JUSTICE": Good morning, Daryn.

KAGAN: What are you looking for to happen today?

LEVIN: Well, I mean, it's clearly what Pamela Mackey does. I mean, I was surprised from the get go that she even had this preliminary hearing. I didn't see what was in it for her. But clearly, at this point, she's trying to create an image here, a very powerful image in Eagle, Colorado, about Kobe Bryant's accuser. And we only heard the beginning of that last week when she had mentioned the possibility at the accuser had sex with three different men on basically consecutive days, and then it came to a grinding halt.

I am assuming she wants to mind that, whether the judge allows her to do that publicly, we are just going to have to wait and see. And I think we're going to know that in short order.

KAGAN: I was reading some analysis about what happened last week, and some people saying Pamela Mackey, the defense attorney, she started the trial last week, she skipped the preliminary hearing. She went right to the trial, and she is trying to establish reasonable doubt.

LEVIN: Well, that's really what it's all about. The preliminary hearing, technically, is designed to see if there is enough credible evidence to hold somebody over for trial. But good lawyers do that. Good lawyers try to create reasonable doubt, and they don't do just it when a jury is sworn, they do it long before. And Pamela Mackey clearly is doing that. Remember, if this trial is held in Eagle, Colorado, this jury pool is very small, and everything she says inside courtroom, outside the courtroom is going to be meaningful, and clearly, she started that last week.

KAGAN: We were talking with Jeffrey Toobin in the last hour about this rape shield law in Colorado, one of the strongest in the country. And it talks about how much of an accuser's past or sexual history you're allowed to bring it. That's going to make it a little bit more difficult for Pamela Mackey, but talk a little bit about where she's trying to go with this idea that the accuser might have had sex with more than just Kobe Bryant.

LEVIN: Yes, I mean, Daryn, I don't really think that the sex shield law is a direct hit on this point. It seems to me that if Pamela Mackey can establish -- and that's a big if, if she can establish that this woman had sex with more than one man around the timeframe, then she has a right, I think, to raise that if the prosecution is trying to show that this woman had some kind of injuries or markings consistent with forcible sex, because the argument is, maybe it wasn't Kobe Bryant, maybe it was somebody else, maybe it was cumulative. That's different than just trashing somebody. That goes to rebutting physical evidence. I think, frankly, if she can prove that, she should be able to bring it in because it's relevant.

KAGAN: And just a quick question, the prosecution, there goal here, just to prove that there's enough evidence to go to trial. Seems like a done deal, I mean, no?

LEVIN: Well, I got to tell you, it's a low standard. It would be stunning to me if the judge said there wasn't enough evidence. And you've got probably enough for probable cause because a judge already issued a warrant based on probable cause. But I think what the prosecution is saying right now is, this is all a smokescreen, this has nothing to do with trying to rebut physical evidence. They're trying to trash the victim, and I think that's the argument that's probably going on behind closed doors right now.

KAGAN: Harvey Levin, always great to have you with us. We'll be watching coverage also from "Celebrity Justice."

LEVIN: See you then.

KAGAN: Appreciate that.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired October 15, 2003 - 11:01   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: We want to get some more insight now on the legal wrangling and the media frenzy surrounding the Kobe Bryant case.
Joining us from Glendale, California, "Celebrity Justice" executive producer, Harvey Levin, a regular contributor to this program.

Harvey, good morning.

HARVEY LEVIN, "CELEBRITY JUSTICE": Good morning, Daryn.

KAGAN: What are you looking for to happen today?

LEVIN: Well, I mean, it's clearly what Pamela Mackey does. I mean, I was surprised from the get go that she even had this preliminary hearing. I didn't see what was in it for her. But clearly, at this point, she's trying to create an image here, a very powerful image in Eagle, Colorado, about Kobe Bryant's accuser. And we only heard the beginning of that last week when she had mentioned the possibility at the accuser had sex with three different men on basically consecutive days, and then it came to a grinding halt.

I am assuming she wants to mind that, whether the judge allows her to do that publicly, we are just going to have to wait and see. And I think we're going to know that in short order.

KAGAN: I was reading some analysis about what happened last week, and some people saying Pamela Mackey, the defense attorney, she started the trial last week, she skipped the preliminary hearing. She went right to the trial, and she is trying to establish reasonable doubt.

LEVIN: Well, that's really what it's all about. The preliminary hearing, technically, is designed to see if there is enough credible evidence to hold somebody over for trial. But good lawyers do that. Good lawyers try to create reasonable doubt, and they don't do just it when a jury is sworn, they do it long before. And Pamela Mackey clearly is doing that. Remember, if this trial is held in Eagle, Colorado, this jury pool is very small, and everything she says inside courtroom, outside the courtroom is going to be meaningful, and clearly, she started that last week.

KAGAN: We were talking with Jeffrey Toobin in the last hour about this rape shield law in Colorado, one of the strongest in the country. And it talks about how much of an accuser's past or sexual history you're allowed to bring it. That's going to make it a little bit more difficult for Pamela Mackey, but talk a little bit about where she's trying to go with this idea that the accuser might have had sex with more than just Kobe Bryant.

LEVIN: Yes, I mean, Daryn, I don't really think that the sex shield law is a direct hit on this point. It seems to me that if Pamela Mackey can establish -- and that's a big if, if she can establish that this woman had sex with more than one man around the timeframe, then she has a right, I think, to raise that if the prosecution is trying to show that this woman had some kind of injuries or markings consistent with forcible sex, because the argument is, maybe it wasn't Kobe Bryant, maybe it was somebody else, maybe it was cumulative. That's different than just trashing somebody. That goes to rebutting physical evidence. I think, frankly, if she can prove that, she should be able to bring it in because it's relevant.

KAGAN: And just a quick question, the prosecution, there goal here, just to prove that there's enough evidence to go to trial. Seems like a done deal, I mean, no?

LEVIN: Well, I got to tell you, it's a low standard. It would be stunning to me if the judge said there wasn't enough evidence. And you've got probably enough for probable cause because a judge already issued a warrant based on probable cause. But I think what the prosecution is saying right now is, this is all a smokescreen, this has nothing to do with trying to rebut physical evidence. They're trying to trash the victim, and I think that's the argument that's probably going on behind closed doors right now.

KAGAN: Harvey Levin, always great to have you with us. We'll be watching coverage also from "Celebrity Justice."

LEVIN: See you then.

KAGAN: Appreciate that.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com