Did you hear? Kobe Bryant is a body-care guru now. The article refers to Bryant as a basketball legend, a world-class athlete, a celebrity of sport, and a five-time NBA champ.
Somehow it never mentions that he is also an accused rapist who avoided a criminal trial verdict by bullying his accuser into silence. Maybe they ran out of column inches. Remember that shit? On the night of July 1, , Bryant choked a year-old employee of the Eagle, Colorado hotel where he was staying hard enough to leave bruises on her neck , bent her over a chair, and drew blood during the ensuing sex act. First, I want to apologize directly to the young woman involved in this incident.
I want to apologize to her for my behavior that night and for the consequences she has suffered in the past year. Although this year has been incredibly difficult for me personally, I can only imagine the pain she has had to endure. I also want to apologize to her parents and family members, and to my family and friends and supporters, and to the citizens of Eagle, Colo.
I also want to make it clear that I do not question the motives of this young woman. No money has been paid to this woman. She has agreed that this statement will not be used against me in the civil case.
Although I truly believe this encounter between us was consensual, I recognize now that she did not and does not view this incident the same way I did. After months of reviewing discovery, listening to her attorney, and even her testimony in person, I now understand how she feels that she did not consent to this encounter. That this type of thing is a dismally familiar tactic in defending against rape charges makes it no less fucking cynical and evil. Kobe Bryant did this! In a society even a little bit less structurally misogynist, he would be a goddamn pariah.
