-- Deepa Bharath BRIEFLY IN THE NEWS...
-- Deepa Bharath
BRIEFLY IN
THE NEWS
Civil trial for Dennis Rodman delayed
The trial in a civil lawsuit accusing Dennis Rodman of raping
former actress Tina New at his West Newport home was continued from
Monday to Jan. 27.
The trial was postponed because the defense needed more time to
conduct further investigation, said New’s attorney, Stephen Tornay.
Rodman’s attorney, John McKay, was not available for comment.
New, a star witness in the trial of Eric Bechler, the 34-year-old
Newport Heights resident now in prison for murdering wife Pegye
during a boating trip off the Newport Beach coast, filed the lawsuit
against Rodman in August 2000, accusing him of drugging and raping
her.
She said in the lawsuit that she was taken against her will to
Rodman’s Seashore Drive home, that Rodman grabbed her “by her hips
and legs, ripped [her] clothing off and began physically throwing her
around.”
Rodman has consistently denied that the alleged Aug. 20, 1999,
incident ever happened. He has also said that he has never met New.
Criminal charges were never filed against the former NBA star because
Newport Beach police said they believed New reported the incident too
late for them to collect the necessary evidence.
Rodman and New have failed to reach a settlement so far. A
court-appointed arbitrator awarded New $225,000, but Rodman declined
that decision.
New helped investigators arrest Bechler by wearing a recording
device and getting a near-confession on tape.
She also testified during the trial and told jurors that after a
night of partying and taking the drug Ecstasy, Bechler narrated in
grisly detail how he hit his wife on the head with a dumbbell,
stuffed her body in trash bags and weighted her into the ocean.
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