The San Francisco Chronicle reports:
The woman who has accused Kobe Bryant of sexual assault should be referred to in court by her name or as “the complaining witness,” because calling her “the victim” implies the NBA star is guilty, his lawyers said in a court filing released Tuesday.
Judge Terry Ruckriegle gave prosecutors five days to respond.
State sexual assault law uses “victim” to describe a person who was allegedly attacked, but defense attorney Hal Haddon said that does not require judges or prosecutors to use the term.
“In a sexual assault case where the defendant asserts consent, the core dispute is whether a crime occurred at all, and therefore whether the complaining witness is a ‘victim’ or not,” Haddon said.
Bryant, 25, says he had consensual sex with the woman at the Vail-area resort where she worked. . . .
Seems sensible to me; I think the legal system should be very harsh to sex offenders, but when the question is whether someone is a sex offender — and whether an offense has even taken place — prosecutors and especially judges shouldn’t use in front of the jury terms that prejudge the question. Thanks to Dan Gifford for the pointer.
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