GWU Law professor explains how Nifong and Durham County

[pnwmom]

may be held liable for civil damages in the Duke "rape" case.

Law Professor John Banzhaf explains a legal basis for the three students to recover damages.

http://www.lincolntribune.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=5701

As the rape case against three Duke lacrosse players continues to unravel, and instances of apparent prosecutorial misconduct multiply, it appears increasingly likely that the accused students will be able to recover civil damages against the county and perhaps also the district attorney, says the public interest law professor who has successful orchestrated legal actions against several major governmental figures, including former Vice President Spiro T. Agnew.

"Although prosecutors generally enjoy absolute immunity from civil liability for violating the constitutional rights of defendants, there are instances -- and this may well be one of them -- where that immunity doesn't apply," says Law Professor John Banzhaf. Moreover, Durham County, NC, does not have absolute immunity, and so the county could be held liable for millions of dollars in civil damages even if District Attorney Michael Nifong is protected from law suits, notes Banzhaf.

"Generally, district attorneys -- acting within their narrow role as prosecutors -- have absolute immunity, and cannot be sued even if they violate a defendant's constitutional rights intentionally, in bad faith, and with malice. This means that, even if it can be proven that Nifong engaged in gross prosecutorial misconduct in prosecuting the students while knowing they were innocent, and did so wrongfully and only for political purposes, he might not be held civilly liable."

On the other hand, the U.S. Supreme Court has carved out an exception when a prosecutor is acting not as an "advocate" performing functions intimately connected with the judicial phase of the criminal proceeding, but rather as an "investigator" or "administrator." In such cases he enjoys only a qualified immunity, and can be held liable if his misconduct violated clearly established legal standards of which a reasonable prosecutor would have known.

SNIP


Even if Nifong is found to be shielded from civil liability by absolutely immunity, such immunity does not apply to the county which he represents, so Durham County, NC, could wind up being civilly liable even in Nifong escapes liability.

[Amused Musings]

1. This case appears to be

a textbook example of why "innocent until proven guilty" is such an important part of our legal system.
1.This is a highly embarrassing case and has marred the reputation of the accussed as it looks llike they are probably innocent
2.The lacrosse players have enough evidence already to win an appeal should it even get there, which is highly unlikely
3.This county will, excuse my french, get the shit sued out of them
4.It severely hurts future cases in which rape actually happens.