Williamson: When did you decide a rape had occurred? Nifong: March 27, based on officers findings and SANE nurse.
Williamson: Until you dismissed the rape charges you personally believed the rape charges? Nifong: Yes.
Williamson: Did there come a time when your belief changed? Nifong: Had conversations with the special prosecutors and based on what they told him he believes that to be the case. Seems not to really believe this is “a case of actual innocence.” Hasn’t got enough info to know if the SPs are wrong.
Williamson: As you sit here today, do you believe a sexual assault occurred? Nifong: At this point what I would have to say honestly is that something happened in that bathroom but maybe not a sexual assault. Maybe a non-sexual assault, an intimidation. Something happened to make everybody leave that scene very quickly.
I think Dave Evans already explained that. They thought she was going to bring her pimp to shoot them or something.
Williamson: Asks about his statements to the media. Nifong: Should have been more familiar with the rules of conduct.
Williamson: Did you actually look at the rules before you stopped making the statements? Nifong: At about the same time.
Williamson: What provoked your concern that you should stop? Nifong: Some non-lawyer friends told him he was talking too much.
Williamson: Joe Cheshire wrote you on March 30 asking you to do exactly that, didn’t he? Nifong: That was the busiest week of my life. Didn’t see it until some days later. Had already made that decision on March 31, before he read the letter.
Williamson: So, they weren’t working. Nifong: They clearly weren’t working.
Williamson: Was there any ethical concern in your decision-making process? Nifong: Not really, probably because of my misunderstanding of the rules. Says he stopped not so much because it was an ethical violation but that he might be being misconstrued or misapprehended.
Williamson: Did you ever refer to the ethical rules in the lawyer’s handbook? Nifong: He did, but much later. Feels his statements were for a law-enforcement reason and were not against the rules.
Williamson: What legitimate law-enforcement purpose? Nifong: To get people to come forward with information.
Williamson: Did that cover all your statements, like saying things on the O’Reilly Factor? How many people in Durham that you were trying to reach watch the O’Reilly Factor. Why talk to anyone other than local media? “Why make it a nationwide pronouncement?” Nifong: Turns out that was a really bad idea.
Williamson: You said you tried to keep this separate from your political race. Nifong: Yes, didn’t want either to affect the other.
Williamson: Recalls the March 27 poll and your talk about endorsements. Did you feel this media would be a good thing for your campaign? Nifong: It certainly brought attention to it but it had as many bad effects as good effects. People voted against him because of the case. Says he got the endorsement of the PA and the FOD (boy must they feel stupid) but not the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People.
Williamson: You said a lot of this stuff at political functions, April 11 NCCU forum, for instance. Nifong: Says he was invited by Chancellor Ammons on April 10. Mayor Bill Bell was also there. At the time he thought it was a “keep the lid on” type meeting. Lots of feeling that if the players were black they’d be in jail, etc. Mentions the players’ attorney’s April 10 press conference about the negative DNA reports on all the players. The people at NCCU were upset that this was being swept under the rug and he told them the investigation was ongoing.
Williamson: Do you think that press conference by the defendants was improper? Nifong: Not sure. They say it was appropriate in light of what I’d said.
Williamson: How did you choose the word hooligan? Nifong: Can’t really answer that. Usually related to bad behavior by sports people. He was speaking to an ESPN reporter at the time he used it. “It was just a word that popped into my head.” Williamson calls it an arcane word, says he’s right that it’s related to sports, especially soccer hooligans.
Williamson: Asks about the Sept. 22 hearing. Why didn’t you immediately, when Kingsbery raised the issue, go look at the report and see if the information was in there? Nifong: Don’t know. Wish I had. It would have saved me a lot of grief.
Williamson: After the Dec. 15 hearing did you make some extra-judicial statement that the information was withheld for privacy reasons? Nifong: Was speaking to a newspaper reporter. Said what appeared in the paper was not what he said. Says he can’t specifically deny he said it but “It doesn’t make much sense to me.”
Williamson: You talked about privacy concerns with Meehan? Nifong: Yes, but the concern was for the lacrosse players.
Williamson: Meehan finally admitted that privacy concerns have nothing to do with unidentified male DNA. “It’s an oxymoron to say unidentified males have privacy concerns because we don’t know who they are.” Nifong: Said he never had any expectation it wouldn’t be in the report. Nifong agrees that unidentified males have no privacy concerns.
