| Mike Nifong | |
|---|---|
| Spouse | Cy Gurney |
| Children | 1 son, 1 daughter |
| Residence | Durham County, North Carolina |
| Alma mater | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University of North Carolina School of Law |
Critics subsequently said Nifong pushed the Mangum case so strongly because of the upcoming election — and indeed, the investigation helped him garner endorsements from Durham’s prominent black leaders. Voters responded at the ballot box by carrying Nifong to a 3 percent win over challenger Freda Black.
Susannah Meadows, a journalist interviewed in “Fantastic Lies,” describes in the film how Nifong gave over 50 interviews making false statements because, in effect, he could. “You naturally think, ‘Wow there’s something there,’ because you believe in the process,” said Michael Cornacchia, Finnerty’s lawyer in the Duke case.
On April 7, Nifong went on Dan Abrams’ MSNBC show and demonstrated how the rape allegedly happened: Nifong demonstrates how Mangum was allegedly strangled from behind by one of the Duke lacrosse players. No physical evidence from Mangum’s hospital report corroborated Nifong ’s claim.
Because of that presumed credibility, Abrams and CBS legal analyst Rikki Klieman told HuffPost that they both thought the Duke players were probably guilty when they first heard the news, with Abrams pointing out that most sexual assault allegations are in fact true.
Nifong subsequently said the case had nothing to do with the election . Attempts to reach him for comment were unsuccessful. Nifong was also eager to tell Mangum’s story, repeatedly failing to use important qualifiers like “we believe the evidence will show.”.
Ten years ago this month, Duke lacrosse players Reade Seligmann, Collin Finnerty and Dave Evans were accused of raping Crystal Mangum, a North Carolina Central College student who was hired to strip for the team during a party.
Zenovich, the film's director, told HuffPost that she didn't get to interview Nifong, but wishes she could have.
By getting disbarred, Nifong lost not just his law license, but his livelihood. Unable to practice law, it's unclear what kind of work, if any, Nifong will do next.
From the early days of the case, Nifong was widely criticized for hishandling of the matter. On Friday, Nifong admitted to manymistakes.
During closing arguments Friday, attorney Doug Brocker of the North CarolinaState Bar said Nifong engaged in a "systematic abuse of prosecutorial power and discretion in the Duke Lacrosse case."
David Evans found a new job in finance. His first offer was revoked after his indictment. Reade Seligmann will be attend Brown University this fall. Collin Finnerty will make a decision shortly about where to start his junior year.
Nifong's punishment could have ranged from a written reprimand to disbarment. He already announced Friday his intention to resign as district attorney.
Nifong also apologized to the three indicted lacrosse players andtheir families.
All three exonerated Duke Lacrosse players -- Reade Seligmann, David Evans and Collin Finnerty -- were in the courtroom Saturday with their families. They listened intently as Nifong was found to have behaved unethically, but showed little emotion.
Nifong was born in Wilmington, North Carolina, and attended New Hanover High School. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) in 1971 with a degree in political science. He registered as a conscientious objector and participated in anti-war protests during the Vietnam War. After working as a teacher and social worker, Nifong returned to UNC in 1975 and earned a J.D. degree from the University of North Carolina School of Law in 1978…
After spending a year as a per diem assistant with the Durham County District Attorney's office, Nifong was hired on a full-time basis in 1979. He eventually worked his way up to chief assistant. After District Attorney Jim Hardin was appointed to a Superior Court vacancy in 2005, Governor Mike Easley appointed Nifong to fill out the remainder of Hardin's term. Nifong was sworn in on April 27, 2005. As the Duke lacrosse case unfolded, Nifong won the Democratic primary on May 2, …
In 2006, Nifong pursued rape, sexual assault, and kidnapping charges against Reade Seligmann, Collin Finnerty, and David Evans, three white members of the Duke University men's lacrosse team. The accusation of sexual assault was made by Crystal Mangum, one of two local black women who the lacrosse team had hired to work as strippers for a party. The case attracted national and international media attention. Former New York Times public editor Daniel Okrent wrote, "It [the ca…
On December 28, 2006, the North Carolina State Bar filed ethics charges against Nifong over his conduct in the case, accusing him of making public statements that were "prejudicial to the administration of justice" and of engaging in "conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation." The seventeen-page document accuses Nifong of violating four rules of professional conduct, listing more than fifty examples of statements he made to the media.
On June 16, 2007, the North Carolina State Bar Disciplinary Committee unanimously voted to disbar Nifong after delivering a guilty verdict to 27 of 32 charges. The committee found Nifong's previous disciplinary record and acknowledgment of his improper pre-trial statements were substantially outweighed by (among other things) the players' vulnerability and his failure to acknowledge the "wrongful nature of (his) conduct with respect of the handling of DNA evidence."
On September 7, 2007, after having already been disbarred, Nifong reported to the Durham County jail to serve a one-day jail sentence for contempt of court. He was held alone in a cell for his protection.
On October 5, 2007, Evans, Finnerty, and Seligmann filed a federal lawsuit alleging that Nifong engineered a wide-ranging conspiracy to frame the players. Also named in the suit were the lab that handled the DNA work, the city of Durham, the city's former police chief, the deputy police chief, the two police detectives who handled the case and five other police department employees. The players sought unspecified damages, and wanted to place the Durham Police D…