“A Louisville police detective testified Monday that she was surprised to see television reporters outside the police station when Karen Sypher arrived to file a rape report last year against University of Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino.” [USA Today, more] A year ago Sypher’s lawyer wrote Pitino a letter demanding $10 million on threat of suit. Sypher is now on trial for alleged extortion and her then lawyer has given testimony for the prosecution. [ABA Journal]
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Not just any testimony, but testimony (supported by a photo) that Sypher performed what the media delicately calls a “sex act” on her lawyer the day he was hired. Deadspin was less delicate.
http://m.deadspin.com/5600876/icky-icky-blowjob-news-from-the-pitino-extortion-trial
okay, off topic, feel free to delete, but this is pretty outrageous. a black church decides to stage a fistfight in order to test a white cop’s reaction. white cop ends up going to hospital.
http://www.theindychannel.com/news/24453132/detail.html
i know normally we are against lawsuits around here, but i say the cop should not only sue the crap out of them (possibly for racial discrimination, too), but there should be arrestes for assault, battery and conspiracy, all around.
Not surprising at all that the reporters were lined up, since Sypher called them and told them that was what she was going to the police station to do:
“Prosecutors played video from a WHAS 11 newscast of Sypher going to LMPD’s Sex Crimes Unit and our Melanie Kahn testified that Sypher called the night before to let us know she would be there.
And sex crimes detective Mona Sullivan testified it was the first time she had ever seen someone come to report a rape allegation with a TV crew there.”
See, Two surprise witnesses with shocking testimony in the Karen Sypher extortion trial (Aug. 3, 2010), http://www.whas11.com/news/Two-surprise-witness-with-shocking-testimony-in-the-Karen-Sypher-extortion-trial-99806199.html
Very interesting trial to follow. Sypher is making dumb blondes, everywhere, a joke.
hey now, you should judge that woman not by the color of her hair, but the content of her character. which is wanting, but still, you get my point.
Check out the Above The Law story by Kashmir Hill. The best coverage of the Sypher case yet.
She was found guilty on all counts. Her husband was allowed to inject that she turned down a plea deal so she could go to trial and take Pitino down. Does that sound like a problem under FRE 410? Lot’s of weird stuff in this case, with dubious testimony on the prosecution’s side, but the result was not surprising.