Purdue News

July 28, 2003

Expert compares Bryant, Tyson cases

There are more similarities than differences between the recent sexual assault allegations against pro basketball player Kobe Bryant and the 1992 Mike Tyson case, which led to a criminal conviction, says a Purdue University history professor.

Randy Roberts wrote "Heavy Justice: The State of Indiana v. Michael G. Tyson," which is the story of J. Gregory Garrison's life as he prepared for and successfully prosecuted Mike Tyson's 1992 Indianapolis rape trial.

"Once again we have a very famous and wealthy athlete," says Roberts, who is an American pop culture expert. "However, one athlete's image is squeaky clean, and the other is the complete opposite.

"It appears that in both cases the woman accompanied the man to a hotel room, but the question is was the sex consensual? I expect to see the prosecutors for the Bryant case concentrate on any physical evidence."

Roberts says one of the differences in the Bryant case is how the Internet has propelled the case to one of the nation's top stories.

CONTACT: Roberts, (765) 429-9870, (765) 423-7711, rroberts@purdue.edu.