NBA star may be at end of his career

[ducks]

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By Charlie Brennan, Rocky Mountain News
September 4, 2003

Kobe Bryant's career in the National Basketball Association may be over if he is convicted of sexual assault.

Sex-offender treatment experts, lawyers and other observers of the Bryant case cite a number of factors that could douse the career of one of the league's brightest stars in relative infancy.


A frequently cited reason is the strict requirements of the mandatory intensive supervision that would accompany a sentence to probation or come with parole after any time spent in prison.

Simply put, that supervision program would make playing road games outside Bryant's state of residence highly problematic at the very least.

Even under a best-case post-conviction scenario for Bryant, should he be found guilty, sex offender supervision rules could conceivably create a situation in which Bryant could play only for the lowly Denver Nuggets - and even then appear only in home games.

For anyone facing Bryant's potential fate - a Colorado felony sex-offense conviction - securing authorities' permission for dozens of out-of-state business trips while under supervision is "not likely," said Kevin Nelan, sex-offender probation supervisor in Jefferson County.

"I can't recall anyone who has been allowed to travel out of state that frequently, who we've had on probation," said Nelan.

He was echoed by Denver defense attorney Dan Recht, a strong critic of Colorado's sex-offender laws and past president of the Colorado Criminal Defense Bar.

"I'm not familiar with (sex-offender supervision officials) ever allowing anybody to do something like that," said Recht.

Only acquittal leads to future

NBA teams play 41 road games a year, not counting the pre-season exhibition schedule, or any postseason play - something that has become commonplace for the Lakers in recent years, due in no small part to the contributions of Bryant, a five-time NBA All Star.

If Bryant is convicted of the charge he's facing, class-three felony sexual assault, his probation could last from 20 years to life.

Even if a plea bargain or other cir stances results in Bryant's conviction on the lesser charge of class-four felony sexual assault, his probation could still range from 10 years to life.

Many believe that only by avoiding a felony sex assault conviction of any kind, could Bryant, who turned 25 on Aug. 23, have an NBA future.

The Lakers are due to report to training camp Oct. 2 at the University of Hawaii in Honolulu, with a preseason opener there Oct. 7. Bryant's preliminary hearing is set for Eagle on Oct. 9.

As to whether Bryant will be on the floor for his team's preseason opener, Lakers' media personnel refer that question to Bryant's agent, Rob Pelinka. Pelinka's office refers the question to Bryant attorney Pamela Mackey in Denver.

And Mackey does not return phone calls on Bryant questions.

State probation officials say sex offenders' out-of-state travel eligibility while under supervision is addressed on a case-by-case basis. A wide range of factors are considered, ranging from the necessity of that worker's travel, to the risks such travel might create - both to the public, and to the person on probation.

"In Colorado, we have a community supervision team, and we do look at teach case individually," said Chris Rowe, adult programs coordinator for the state's Division of Probation Services.

"So, I would be hard-pressed to say absolutely not or definitely yes," on Bryant's potential for NBA-style traveling while under intensive supervision.

"The probation services supervision team would set the criteria that would have to be met, to insure victim and community safety."

In deciding whether someone in Bryant's situation would be permitted an NBA player's level of globe-trotting, officials would have to consider what often awaits a professional athlete on the road: many young, attractive and aggressively friendly women seeking to spend time with a player.

"I think that is a high risk," said Karen Vigil, an adult sex-offender probation officer in Boulder County. "Every case is handled individually, but obviously that is not an ideal situation, which is going to cause some problems."

Nelan agreed, saying, "That would be viewed as a high- risk situation, which could put that person in a position where it makes their ability to comply with their court-ordered probation more difficult."

Contact with kids restricted

Should Bryant be convicted in Colorado, and desire - at the point he's released from custody - to move from Colorado to another state, he could only do so with the approval of his supervision management team.

The sex-offender intensive supervision guidelines state that "Officers should not allow sex offenders to transfer to any state that does not have evaluation and treatment" standards matching Colorado's, which are viewed as among the toughest in the country.

But a person convicted of sexual assault in Colorado who aspires to relocate to California, where Bryant lives, might have a chance to do so.

"We have had some contacts with California's supervision, and it compares fairly similarly to ours," said Nelan.

Another potential hurdle for an NBA player with a Colorado sex crime conviction would be a rule that could make signing autographs - or doing anything else - with, for or around children extremely difficult.

Under state law, "Sex offenders placed on probation should be restricted from having contact with children, including their own children, as ordered by the court."

That rule applies even to offenders convicted of assaults on adults, not children. Bryant, who married in 2001, has a seven-month-old daughter.

A sexual assault conviction in Colorado could also possibly require Bryant to register as a sex offender in any one of NBA cities he travels to. The NBA has 29 teams, two in Los Angeles, two more in northern California, with the rest located outside the state.

"The law says that you have to register with local law enforcement, whether it is a temporary or permanent address," said Vigil. "Does it apply if it's just for a couple of days? I think, technically, it probably does . . . This would be a very new situation in a number of ways, and very complicated."

Questions of commerce

David Carter, a sports business professor at the University of Southern California, sees countless barriers to a post-conviction career for Bryant, many of them unrelated to Colorado's legal constraints.

Carter points to questions of commerce; what team, in a league already battling serious image problems, would want Bryant? And even if some team wanted him, would the league?

"The NBA has such monumental perception problems at this point, would Commissioner David Stern - or another commissioner at that time Kobe gets out of prison - drop the hammer and put on their own little campaign with these teams to make sure he's not able to play?" Carter asked.

"This is different from a (drug) possession charge. This is serious stuff. It's the real deal."

Possible restrictions placed by parole or probation supervisors on a convicted Bryant, Carter said, raise a nightmarish scenario for any team's marketing office. And it will not be that easy pre-trial.

"The Lakers are going to get hit by a tidal wave," Carter said. "There's been nothing like this since the Magic Johnson AIDS announcement. At least with that one, you kind of knew where it might go. With this, you don't know where it's going, or when."

Recht, the Denver defense attorney, considers all talk of what limits might be placed on Bryant by parole or probation supervision to be beside the point.

"Make no mistake. The stakes could not be higher," said Recht. "If Kobe Bryant is convicted, he will not get probation. He will go to prison for a long time, and his NBA career will be over."

[LittleGeneral]

Interesting article...I agree with the final statement by Recht. However, I didn't realize that probation could very well in Bryant's career as well.

This is a little beside the point but I didn't want to start a new thread on it...O'Reilly had Geraldo Rivera his this evening regarding this case...Geraldo said that he thinks talks are still on-going to attempt to settle this outside of court...if this happened, obviously, the chances of Kobe getting convicted would plummet. He also mentioned that if this option fails for Bryant, then he thinks there's a 50-50 chance that the preliminary hearing scheduled for Oct. 9 will be waived by Bryant's attorneys and that the trial will begin sooner than later.

[grjr]

Of course no lawyers are in involved in any settlement talks with the alleged victum since that would be illegal.

jr

[LittleGeneral]

Perhaps I misunderstood him, but that's what I thought he said. But again, it was Geraldo, and everything he says must be taken with a grain of salt.

Also, I've heard that Kobe would have to register as a sex offender if the case was settled in civil court.

True or false?

[grjr]

Guess I should have put a winky after my comment. I have no doubt Geraldo said that and very little doubt that talks are ongoing. Obviously Kobe and the Lakers (NBA?) can't afford for him to be convicted of this. If there's any doubt about the verdict then they'll do anything to stay out of court.

jr

[grjr]

Also, I've heard that Kobe would have to register as a sex offender if the case was settled in civil court.

The criminal case CAN"T be settled out of court. If he's found not guilty in the criminal case then he won't have to register no matter the outcome of a civil case.

When you hear Geraldo mention trying to settle now it means they are trying to buy off the victim so she won't testify. There still would be a trial but without her testimony it would be real tough to get any kind of a conviction.

jr