Nifong and the N.C. Bar

Nifong who we blogged about here, is now undergoing investigations by the NC bar. He is being accused of saying inflammatory and misleading things about suspects to the media under investigation. And of course the drive-by media ate it up, quickly reporting on the players and moving on, leaving a trail of destruction in it's path. According to a report over at al-AP, the bar has cited numerous statements by Nifong to the press including:

- Nifong referred to the lacrosse players as "a bunch of hooligans."
- He declared: "I am convinced there was a rape, yes, sir."
- He told ESPN: "One would wonder why one needs an attorney if one was not charged and had not done anything wrong."
- He told The New York Times: "I'm disappointed that no one has been enough of a man to come forward. And if they would have spoken up at the time, this may never have happened."

There are quite a weaknesses in the case as well such as

ack of DNA evidence; the accuser's ever-shifting story; one player's claim to have an alibi supported by receipts and time-stamped photos; and the defense's insistence that the photo lineup that was used to identify the defendants violated police procedures and was skewed against the men.
Before the ethics charges were filed, Bob Brown, an attorney in private practice who once worked with Nifong in the prosecutor's office, predicted the case would be a "bloodbath" for the prosecution if it went to trial.
Among other questions raised in recent weeks: Why did it take months for anyone from Nifong's office to interview the accuser? And why did Nifong initially withhold from the defense DNA test results that found genetic material from several men - none of them Duke lacrosse players - on the accuser's underwear and body?

Check the story over at al-AP linked above for more. The Smoking Gun has the 17 page NC bar document here.