Perrish Cox’s assault case preliminary hearing waived to keep details a secret
Harvey A. Steinberg, attorney for Denver Broncos cornerback Perrish Cox, will not exercise his client’s right to a preliminary hearing after a judge ruled that it would be open to the public and media. Steinberg said that the public did not have any right
being present for court proceedings leading up to Cox’s trial for sexual assault.
An attorney was also hired by several news firms and the media to fight for releasing details of the case to the public. Steve Zansberg was hired by the firms and says that doing such a thing is unparalleled because a judge in Kobe Bryant’s case did not
approve a similar request. The Los Angeles Lakers star was also charged with sexual assault but the charges were later dropped.
"There's no reason in logic and in law to treat this case differently ... merely because the defendant is a professional athlete," Zansberg argued in court.
Douglas County Judge Susanna Meissner-Cutler then said that Steinberg did not present their case well enough to convince her to make the hearing closed to the public, after which Steinberg decided to waive the preliminary hearing and will go directly to
trial. He is expected to enter a plea bargain with the court in his hearing scheduled for 16 May, 2011.
Steinberg said that he chose to forego a preliminary hearing because it would have been sensationalized and "created a situation where I couldn't get a fair jury." Cox did not wish to comment after Thursday’s hearing. All he said was, "I'm controlling what
I can control.”
An affidavit that contains the details of the case’s allegations has been sealed among most of the other documents related to the case. That includes the record of Cox’s arrest on 9 December, 2010 with the supposed attack occurring on 6 September of the
same year.
Cox has just finished his initial term with the Broncos after being chosen in the fifth round, overall pick number 137, in the 2010 NFL Draft. He participated in 15 games during his first season, starting nine of them, and completed the season with 58 total
tackles, only one of which was aided, along with 14 passes averted, one interception that he took back for 15 yards and two forced fumbles.
The Broncos had a chaotic season in 2010, one that was additionally blemished by a discomforting videotaping disgrace and a notorious decline in performance, leading to the firing of head coach Josh McDaniels in early December.
After ending the season 4-12, the worst in franchise history, Hall of Famer John Elway came back to the team that he became a legend with as the chief football executive. He then hired John Fox as the Broncos new head coach to replace McDaniels.
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