Cleared Duke Players Could Sue

Former Duke lacrosse players from left, Dave Evans, Collin Finnerty, and Reade Seligmann applaud during a news conference in Raleigh, N.C., Wednesday, April 11, 2007. Prosecutors dropped all charges Wednesday against the three Duke lacrosse players accused of sexually assaulting a stripper at a party, saying the athletes were innocent victims of a "tragic rush to accuse" by an overreaching district attorney. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome) (Gerry Broome - AP)

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Lawyers for three former Duke lacrosse players are considering suing the district attorney who pursued rape and sexual assault charges against the three men, who were declared innocent this week by the state attorney general.

Durham County District Attorney Mike Nifong's issued a carefully worded apology to the players on Thursday, but it may not have been enough to prevent a lawsuit.

So far, attorneys for David Evans, Reade Seligmann, and Collin Finnerty have not said whether they plan a civil action against Nifong, but they have not ruled it out.

Prosecutors generally have immunity for what they do inside the courtroom, but experts said that protection probably doesn't cover some of Nifong's more questionable actions in his handling of the case _ such as calling the lacrosse players "a bunch of hooligans" in one of several interviews deemed unethical by the state bar.

"I think their chances of success suing Mr. Nifong are reasonably good, despite what we call prosecutorial immunity," said John Banzhaf, a professor at the George Washington University School of Law.

North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper threw out the case against the three young men on Wednesday, pronounced them innocent and delivered a withering attack on Nifong, portraying him as a "rogue" prosecutor guilty of "overreaching." Cooper said Nifong rushed the case, failed to verify the accuser's allegations and pressed on despite the warning signs.

In his first comment on that decision, Nifong said in a statement Thursday: "To the extent that I made judgments that ultimately proved to be incorrect, I apologize to the three students that were wrongly accused."

He issued what appeared to be a plea to the students not to take any further action, saying, "It is my sincere desire that the actions of Attorney General Cooper will serve to remedy any remaining injury that has resulted from these cases."

Seligmann's attorney, Jim Cooney, said he would be advising his client's family of all of their legal options. "But nobody is racing to file any kind of a lawsuit at this point," he said.

Separately, the North Carolina bar charged Nifong months ago with several violations of professional conduct that could lead to his disbarment. The case is set for trial before a bar committee in June.

Among other things, the bar said Nifong made misleading and inflammatory comments about the athletes, even before they were charged. In the early days of the case, for example, Nifong said several times that members of the lacrosse team were not cooperating with investigators. Not true, according to court documents.

Experts said the ethics charges could form the basis for a lawsuit seeking damages from Nifong.