Vanderbilt rape defendants say they were coerced, threatened
Two former Vanderbilt University football players charged with rape say in court filings that campus police coerced them and athletics department staff threatened to sanction them during the investigation in ways that tainted the case.
Their motions to suppress evidence will be among 12 legal filings argued Wednesday in front of Judge Monte D. Watkins during a pretrial hearing expected to last all day.
With its latest maneuvers, the defense team is trying to chip away at evidence and raise doubts about police tactics. The filings also reveal new details about interactions among the four former players charged in what police said was the rape of an unconscious 21-year-old female student inside a Gillette Hall dorm on campus on June 23, 2013, after a night of underage drinking at The Tin Roof.
Vanderbilt spokeswoman Beth Fortune said no one from the university had been subpoenaed for the hearing and declined to comment further on the motions.
The legal arguments should set parameters for a Nov. 3 trial for two of the defendants: Brandon Vandenburg — the woman's boyfriend at the time — and Cory Batey.
But even that date could be wobbly. In one recent filing, Batey asked that his case be separated from Vandenburg's. He said Vandenburg's interviews with TV media incriminated Batey as the "primary aggressor" in the alleged sexual assault.
There have been other accusations of misconduct by defense attorneys and prosecutors, questions about missing evidence and arguments over which of the alleged victim's medical records will be allowed at trial.
Watkins said he would rule quickly on those matters, but he has not done so publicly. He ordered much of the case put under seal — a move unsuccessfully opposed by The Tennessean and a state media coalition.
The two other defendants, Brandon Banks and Jaborian Mckenzie, have already separated their trials, with attorneys anticipating deals with prosecutors in return for testimony.
Defense attacks police tactics
Until a flurry of September motions by Batey's attorney, Vandenburg's defense team had mounted the primary challenge against police and prosecutors.
But Batey has now asked the judge to keep out of trial a statement he recorded with the Vanderbilt Office of Student Conduct, and all information police obtained through a search warrant.
His attorney argues that the search warrant was based on information obtained by an improper interrogation of Vandenburg. Similarly, Batey's interview with campus staff came after they "threatened sanctions should he and the other alleged defendants not fully cooperate."
Vandenburg makes a similar argument.
"On multiple occasions then-head football coach James Franklin and Associate Director of Athletics Kevin Colon threatened Mr. Vandenburg that his scholarship would be taken away if he did not fully cooperate with the police investigations," reads his filing.
Prior court filings and Tennessean reporting have shown deep connections between the case and the Vanderbilt football program, including dozens of text messages among students and athletics department staffers. In addition to the four indicted players, a fifth pleaded guilty to a cover-up, five more appeared on the witness list and two others had contact with the woman soon after the incident.
She also was contacted by Franklin and former staffer Dwight Galt, according to defense filings.
Vandenburg also charges that he was not read his Miranda rights during an interrogation four days after the attack. He said a campus police officer told him he had to answer questions from Metro detectives.
He describes Vanderbilt police as working "in concert" with Metro and being in "constant contact" with the athletics staff members who spoke to him.
Vandenburg's defense team also says police illegally gathered information from his cellphone and didn't have cause to interrogate because the alleged victim — as of June 27 — had told authorities she didn't believe she was assaulted.
At some point, the woman was shown surveillance footage from the hallway outside Vandenburg's dorm room. Police have said Vandenburg made and shared photos and videos of a sexual assault.
Separately, Davidson County prosecutors asked for a mental health report on Vandenburg. That came in response to the defense's plan to provide testimony about his mental condition.
The four former players are each charged with five counts of aggravated rape and two counts of aggravated sexual battery. Vandenburg also is charged with one count of unlawful photography and tampering with evidence. They have pleaded not guilty and are free on bonds.
Reach Tony Gonzalez at 615-259-8089 and on Twitter @tgonzalez.