Another lacrosse lawsuit coming
38 players take aim at Duke, city
Published: Thu, Feb. 21, 2008 12:30AM
Modified Thu, Feb. 21, 2008 07:12AM
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closeDURHAM -- Duke University and the city have not seen the last of the lawsuits stemming from the infamous Duke lacrosse case.
Thirty-eight players and their parents plan to announce this afternoon the filing of a lawsuit against Duke and a number of other entities and individuals.
Charles J. Cooper, an appellate lawyer and litigator in the capital area, will provide details of the suit at the National Press Club in Washington.
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It was unclear Wednesday what allegations the 38 players plan to bring.
Their suit comes almost five months after Dave Evans, Collin Finnerty and Reade Seligmann -- the three players who were charged and then exonerated with declarations of their innocence by the state attorney general -- filed a suit in federal court.
The exonerated players have alleged that former Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong, the city of Durham, the DNA laboratory hired by Nifong and others associated with the case conspired to falsely charge the former Duke students with rape. The charges stemmed from a team party in March 2006 where an escort service dancer alleged that she had been gang-raped.
The exonerated players' suit contends that Nifong, Durham police and others conspired to bring charges even though they knew that the allegations were "a total fabrication."
Duke University reached a confidential settlement with those three players shortly after state Attorney General Roy Cooper dropped the charges.
Late last year, Breck Archer, Ryan McFadyen and Matt Wilson, three players not charged in the criminal case, filed a lawsuit against Duke University, Nifong, the city of Durham and numerous others they accused of being part of a vast conspiracy.
Their 400-page complaint, filed by Robert Ekstrand, a Durham lawyer, lists 35 causes of action that include negligent infliction of emotional distress and fraud.
City officials had heard little Wednesday about the details of the suit the 38 players plan to bring.
Duke administrators declined to comment, saying they had not seen the complaint.
anne.blythe@newsobserver.com or (919) 932-8741
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