Millions Sought In De Anza College Rape Suit
SAN JOSE (KCBS) - The attorney for a woman who claims she was gang raped by several De Anza College baseball players said in closing arguments her client should be awarded $7.5 million for emotional and psychological damage from the alleged assault.
Insomnia and suicidal thoughts have plagued her client since the 2007 party hosted by several members of the De Anza College baseball team, attorney Barbara Spector said Wednesday.
Lawyers for two defendants characterized the civil case as a "mission for millions" by a woman, then 17, who asked for sex and then during the investigation offered different accounts of what had happened.
"It's very key that the jury get a complete picture of what it is that she said originally and how she's now changing it," said Bruce Funk, the lawyer for defendant Kenneth Chadwick.
KCBS' Matt Bigler Reports:
Spector will be allowed to rebut that argument on Friday before a jury of six men and six women begins deliberations.
Charges have been dropped against most of the nine originally accused in the case. One defendant who did not show up to court faces summary judgment, while another agreed to a settlement.
That left just Chadwick and Christopher Knopf on trial in a case where the former Santa Clara County District Attorney decided not to pursue criminal charges because almost every witness had been drinking.
During the five weeks of testimony, Spector argued her client had been too intoxicated at the party on South Buena Vista Avenue to consent to sexual activity.
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