Kobe vs. the Rape Shield Doctrine

Only two people know what happened that led to charges being filed against Kobe Bryant--Kobe and his accuser--not the prosecutor, not the defense, not his wife, not her mother, not the media and not you, or I. As the media furor kicks into full gear to feed our voyeuristic pleasure, please keep this in mind before passing judgment. Better yet, don’t pass any judgment, just pray that the jury makes the right decision.

We live in a society where rape and its bedfellows go more undetected than deterred and where simultaneously the temptation to bear false witness grows in proportion to the size of the alleged perpetrator’s billfold or the needs of the alleged victim’s ego. Under such circumstances, prosecutors are under enormous pressure to charge and convict, sometimes at all costs. Likewise, defense counsel feel the strain of knowing that of all crimes, rape charges bear a greater probability of the innocent being convicted.

Why? Because Kobe will go one on one in a battle that years ago was tipped in favor of the accuser because of the overly zealous application of the Rape Shield Doctrine that bars evidence of the accuser’s sexual proclivities and incredulity. This Doctrine has legalized the presumption that, unlike brutish men, woman never maliciously lie about or use sex or the lack thereof to gain an advantage. This has the effect of nullifying the presumption that one is innocent until proven guilty. Kobe therefore faces the fight of his life. Hopefully, despite the Doctrine, either the jury will acquit in the face of inconclusive evidence or, under the best scenario, there will be convincing evidence leaving no doubt about Kobe’s guilt or innocence. But this rarely happens, especially with rape. Hence, under the Rape Shield Doctrine, in a close case if there is evidence that the accuser has used sex to falsely accuse or to blackmail, Kobe will not be allowed to present this evidence.

Because of this, I do not champion nor condemn Kobe or his accuser. I merely pray hoping the worst does not occur--that the Doctrine prevents a presentation of the truth and the jury thereby convicts an innocent man. If so, we will all lose and have complicity in his loss. However, quickly forgetting, we’ll turn off our televisions and turn in for bed while Kobe, never to forget, will turn in his yellow Laker’s uniform for an orange prison jumpsuit.

Loren M. Lambert
July 29, 2003