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Monday, August 25, 1997

Grand jury to hear evidence in sexual assault complaint

DALLAS (AP) - A Dallas County grand jury is expected to meet Tuesday to consider a sexual assault complaint a Grand Prairie woman filed against Dallas Cowboys offensive lineman Nate Newton.

The 31-year-old woman said through her lawyer that Newton, 35, assaulted her June 15 at her mobile home where she lives with her two young sons. Both the woman and Newton confirm that they had a lengthy relationship.

Newton, through his attorney, has denied the sexual assault accusation.

Both Newton and his accuser have some explaining to do, according to lawyers and prosecutors involved in the case.

Norm Kinne, Dallas County's first assistant district attorney, says Newton must explain a recorded phone conversation in which the athlete seemingly acknowledged to the woman that some type of misconduct took place.

"I went wrong when you said, 'No.' I should have just stopped," Newton is heard telling the woman during the phone call, which Kinne said occurred two days after the attack.

David Cole, the woman's lawyer, says grand jurors will hear the recording from the woman's answering machine.

Kinne said authorities want an explanation for Newton's comment.

"I certainly believe it's a statement that, if it doesn't mean what it sounds like it means, it bears some explanation," Kinne told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Howard Shapiro, a lawyer who represents Newton, says he believes that the recording is "highly suspicious" and is having it "analyzed."

But Cole says the recording is authentic, adding, "As a matter of fact, the FBI has looked at it."

Prosecutor Kinne says grand jurors will want to know why the woman waited nearly two months before filing a complaint on Aug. 8 with the Grand Prairie Police Department.

"My point of view is when you're a victim of a crime, the first place you should go is to the police," Kinne said. "The longer you wait, the weaker the case gets."

Cole says that before going to the police, his client asked for $650,000 from Newton, but he contends that she made the request only after Newton and his attorney asked her how much money it would take to keep her from going to authorities.

The lawyer said the woman had hoped to resolve the matter without getting the police involved because she did not want to be involved in a police investigation.

The money request, Shapiro says, was a "shakedown."