Beginning of the End

The decision by Durham District Attorney Michael Nifong to withdraw from the Duke lacrosse case means that this train wreck of a prosecution has moved toward its end game. Now that Nifong has lawyered up on the ethics charges brought against him, he is heeding his counsel's obvious advice to stop digging in that hole he has been working out of for the past few months.

It's not too hard to see what happens now: Pre-trial proceedings, including a hearing now scheduled for February 5, will be delayed while the special prosecutor the North Carolina Attorney General's Office appoints to handle the case gets up to speed. Once that happens, the remaining charges will be dropped against the defendants, with the new prosecutor explaining that, while he or she cannot be sure what happened during the night in question, there is simply not enough credible evidence to justify moving forward with the case.

Then the defendants will file civil lawsuits against Nifong and his office. Although Nifong has behaved like a buffoon, a civil case will be very difficult to win given the wide discretion DAs have to bring (or not bring) charges and the problems that would arise if persons facing charges that are then dropped or who are exonerated are free to bring such suits.

And let's not forget that it really isn't that hard to avoid being indicted on sexual assault charges. Lots of us manage to pull that off. High on the list of indictment avoidance tips is to not attend parties with lots of alcohol, 40 or so men, and no women except for strippers one of your pals has hired.