March 1, 200521 yr http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2002530 Parties negotiate details, ABC News reports ESPN.com news services Kobe Bryant has agreed in principle to a settlement with the woman who accused him of sexual assault, sources told ABC News on Tuesday. The NBA star was scheduled to give a deposition Friday, but when that was postponed, speculation arose that a settlement was in the works. The parties were to meet and could have a signed agreement by the end of the week, ABC News reported. L. Lin Wood and John Clune, attorneys for the 20-year-old accuser, were going to question Bryant on Friday, but Wood said Monday that the session was called off after his team arrived in Orange County, Calif., for the meeting. The deposition -- where attorneys question a party to a lawsuit before trial, without a judge present -- would have been the first time Bryant had spoken under oath about what happened. Wood declined further comment. Clune and Bryant's lead attorney Pamela Mackey did not immediately return calls. "It sounds like somebody's talking numbers," said veteran plaintiff's attorney Mel Hewitt of Atlanta told The Associated Press on Monday. "We do that in a lot of cases. We'll push for the deposition knowing they don't want to talk to us and hopefully that makes somebody want to drag their checkbook out." He said the deposition might also have been postponed for a simpler reason, such as an illness. U.S. District Judge Richard Matsch previously refused to bar the woman's lawyers from asking Bryant about his sexual history. He said he would handle any objections to the questions afterward. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages for mental injuries, humiliation and public scorn the woman said she has suffered since her June 2003 encounter with Bryant at the Vail-area resort where she worked. The woman, now married and pregnant, sued Bryant in Denver federal court last summer, three weeks before the criminal case against him in Eagle County collapsed when she decided she could not take part in a trial. Bryant, a married father of one, issued an apology but insisted the sex was consensual. Information from The Associated Press was used in this report. :rolly
March 2, 200521 yr QUOTE(Chisoxfn @ Mar 2, 2005 -> 12:44 AM) I bet she got a whole hell of a lot of money. On ESPN, Roger Cossack's "educated guess" ( their term ) was 5 million bucks. He said that she probably started out asking for 20, but his guess is they settled at 5 mil. The settlement supposedly includes a "shut up" clause ( my term ), which means no book, no Oprah, no 20/20, etc. If that's true, it's money well-spent for Kobe to keep that girl off TV.
March 2, 200521 yr QUOTE(The Critic @ Mar 2, 2005 -> 10:19 AM) On ESPN, Roger Cossack's "educated guess" ( their term ) was 5 million bucks. He said that she probably started out asking for 20, but his guess is they settled at 5 mil. The settlement supposedly includes a "shut up" clause ( my term ), which means no book, no Oprah, no 20/20, etc. If that's true, it's money well-spent for Kobe to keep that girl off TV. WHAT??? SHE TOOK MONEY??!! We need a face that rolls it's eyes, as in 'give me a break'.
March 2, 200521 yr Author QUOTE(LosMediasBlancas @ Mar 2, 2005 -> 09:03 AM) WHAT??? SHE TOOK MONEY??!! We need a face that rolls it's eyes, as in 'give me a break'. :rolly
March 2, 200521 yr QUOTE(Steff @ Mar 2, 2005 -> 03:06 PM) :rolly eh, too happy, not smart ass enough.
March 3, 200521 yr QUOTE(Chisoxfn @ Mar 3, 2005 -> 01:00 AM) 5 mill was cheap from Kobe's perspective, imo. 5 mil too many if you ask me.
March 3, 200521 yr Author QUOTE(LosMediasBlancas @ Mar 3, 2005 -> 01:02 PM) 5 mil too many if you ask me. If he had nothing to hide he should have proceeded...
March 3, 200521 yr QUOTE(Steff @ Mar 3, 2005 -> 01:07 PM) If he had nothing to hide he should have proceeded... That's what got him into trouble in the first place.
March 3, 200521 yr QUOTE(Steff @ Mar 3, 2005 -> 01:07 PM) If he had nothing to hide he should have proceeded... It comes down to a cost thing. Even if he was innocent it could be worth $5 million to put this behind him. He might not have wanted every detail of his sex life and history paraded out for the American public to hear. And if he has other deep dark secrets, you know that stuff is going to get drug out. Plus from a purely financial standpoint, that $6 mil might have been a bargain as to what he would have had to pay his lawyers for their work on a 6 month trial and everything that goes with that.
March 3, 200521 yr Author QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Mar 3, 2005 -> 01:11 PM) It comes down to a cost thing. Even if he was innocent it could be worth $5 million to put this behind him. He might not have wanted every detail of his sex life and history paraded out for the American public to hear. And if he has other deep dark secrets, you know that stuff is going to get drug out. Plus from a purely financial standpoint, that $6 mil might have been a bargain as to what he would have had to pay his lawyers for their work on a 6 month trial and everything that goes with that. No amount of $$ is too much to prove innocence, IMO. Especially in the case of sexual assult. He'll forever be whispered about. The guy has more than enough $$ to take it to the limit.. he's got some skeletons.. and, IMO... they have a lot to do with his inability to be told "no" in the bedroom.
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