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Transcripts in Kobe Bryant case wrongly given to media

EAGLE, Colo. - A court reporter accidentally released transcripts of a closed-door hearing in the Kobe Bryant case, setting off a First Amendment battle between the judge and media organizations that received the documents.

The judge in the case issued an order late Thursday threatening contempt of court if the material was published. The news organizations that received the transcripts contended the order was unconstitutional, but none immediately reported on any of the material.

The organizations said they will appeal the order to the Colorado Supreme Court on Monday.

The transcripts were from a two-day closed-door hearing earlier this week that dealt primarily with witness testimony and evidence on the accuser's sex life.

On Friday the judge set a trial date of Aug. 27, more than a year after Bryant allegedly assaulted a 19-year-old woman in a luxury hotel. The trial is expected to take three to four weeks.

COMPTON, Calif. - Prosecutors declined to file charges Friday against a suspected car thief who was pummeled with a flashlight by a Los Angeles police officer - an arrest that has drawn comparisons to the Rodney King beating.

The district attorney's office said charges would not be filed for now because there were questions about whether the arresting officers would be able to testify against the suspect. But prosecutors did not rule out possible charges in the future.

Stanley Miller, 36, remained jailed on a parole violation, said his defense attorney Mark Werksman.

WASHINGTON - An animal in the United States tested positive in a preliminary screening test for mad cow disease, Agriculture Department officials said Friday.

The carcass is being sent to USDA National Veterinary Laboratory in Ames, Iowa, for additional tests. Results are expected in 4 to 7 days.