More than a month after an exotic dancer claimed that members of the Duke men's lacrosse team raped her, a grand jury issued two sealed indictments Monday against two players, said defense lawyer Robert Ekstrand.
The teammates, whose names have not been released, are expected to report to the Durham County Jail by mid-afternoon Tuesday.
"Two young men have been charged with crimes they did not commit," Ekstrand said in a statement. "This is a tragedy... They are both innocent."
Superior Court Judge Ronald Stephens sealed at least one indictment, according to a filing at the court house. He cited a state law that permits the contents of an indictment to be kept secret until the suspect is arrested or goes before a judge.
The grand jury, which convenes every two weeks, adjourned at about 2 p.m. Monday afternoon.
In Monday's meeting, the jury issued 81 public bills of indictment, and 24 bills were carried forward or returned to the prosecutor. The jury indicted or pushed forward every case with which it was faced.
Grand jury proceedings and the identities of the 18 jurors are not public information.
Ekstrand, who represents 32 of the 47 members on the lacrosse team, declined to comment on whether or not his clients were indicted by the jury.
Defense lawyer James Williams, who is representing senior lacrosse team captain Dan Flannery, said at about 8:45 p.m. at the Durham County Prison that he did not think his client was indicted.
Glen Bachman, the lawyer representing sophomore player Ryan McFadyen, the student who sent a graphic e-mail detailing threats to strippers hours after the party, told The New York Times that his client was not involved in the indictments.
Members of the lacrosse team hired the alleged victim, a 27-year-old North Carolina Central University student, and a second woman to dance at the March 13 party held at 610 N. Buchanan Blvd.
The alleged victim claims three members of the team sexually assaulted her for 30 minutes in a bathroom. DNA tests, however, showed there were no matches between the lacrosse team members' DNA and evidence collected from the alleged victim the night of the party.
Defense lawyers say they have time-stamped pictorial evidence that proves the allegations are false.
According to court records, the Duke Hospital nurse who performed a medical exam on the alleged victim after the incident said the woman had injuries and behaviors consistent with an individual who has been sexually assaulted.
More than 50 national and local reporters, cameramen and photographers lined the sixth floor of the Durham City Courthouse from dawn until dusk Monday awaiting information about the case.
Reporters swarmed defense lawyers and District Attorney Mike Nifong, even snapping photos after Nifong emerged from a bathroom. "It would be nice to figure out a way to give me back my anonymity," he said as media surrounded him.
Nifong refused to comment on Monday's developments.
"I'm sorry, I really can't," he said when asked to speak about the indictments.
The University released a statement at approximately 5 p.m. detailing what top administrators knew about the events Monday.
"We are aware that the district attorney made a presentation to the grand jury today, but we have no knowledge about the contents of his presentation, and no information about the grand jury's deliberations has been released," John Burness, senior vice president for public affairs and government relations, said in the statement. "At this point we remain unclear about the precise status of this case and we must simply wait for news of today's proceedings."
The second dancer also spoke out Monday morning, confirming the mental and physical state of the alleged victim after the party.
"She looked absolutely fine [when arriving at the party]," the second dancer told NBC-17, noting that the accuser's demeanor changed dramatically after they left the house. "She was definitely a totally different woman than when I first met her. She definitely was under some sort of substance."
The second dancer also supported the alleged victim's claim that she was raped at the party.
"I can't imagine that a woman would do that to herself if she didn't feel like it was worth doing it," the woman said. "And the only reason it would be worth doing it is if she was raped. So, I have no reason to believe she was lying."
Saidi Chen and Sarah Kwak contributed to this story.
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