Day 1: The alleged victim testifies Day 2: Witness identifies Puckett Day 3: Puckett testifies Day 4: The defense rebuttal Day 5: Closing statements Day 6: The verdict Your Voice Join the conversation with other MPR listeners in the News Forum.

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Puckett prosecution was uphill battle
April 4, 2003

Minneapolis, Minn. — (AP) - Prosecutors knew they faced an uphill battle when they charged former Minnesota Twins star Kirby Puckett with attacking a woman in a restaurant bathroom.

They lost because the six women and six men on the jury apparently weren't convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that the Hall of Famer was guilty. On Thursday, the jury cleared him on all counts.

They spent over eight hours trying to sort out two starkly contrasting stories about what happened late the night of Sept. 5 at the Redstone American Grill in Eden Prairie.

The woman testified that Puckett dragged her into the men's room, forced her into a stall and grabbed her breast hard enough to leave a bruise. But Puckett told the jury he only escorted the woman on his arm "like a gentleman" into the men's room, with her consent, because there was a crowd outside the women's room.

Friends of the woman and Puckett backed up their respective stories. The only witness who saw anything at the restrooms and didn't know her or Puckett beforehand supported the woman but admitted he had at least seven beers that night.

Three Twin Cities defense attorneys weren't surprised the jury acquitted Puckett.

I think bits and pieces of both stories were true. I don't feel that Mr. Puckett intended to harm her. I think it all started out very playful and I think it ended up in a bad place for both of them. - Rick Mattson, juror

"The jury probably just had a problem with finding that the case was proved beyond a reasonable doubt," Ron Meshbesher said. Even if jurors think a defendant is probably guilty, "the law requires a much higher standard of proof," he said.

If prosecutors made any mistake, it was in "overcharging" Puckett with felony false imprisonment on top of the lesser criminal sexual conduct and assault charges, Meshbesher and William Mauzy agreed. But they doubted that affected the outcome.

Otherwise, all three agreed the lawyers on both sides did their jobs well.

"It sounds like it was a well-run and well-tried case," attorney Joe Friedberg said. "It sounds like the jury did what it was supposed to do, and the system worked."

They were divided on whether Puckett's one-time standing as one of Minnesota's most beloved sports heroes might have affected the case.

"It seemed to a lot of us that if it had not been Kirby Puckett, there would not have been a felony criminal charge - ever," Mauzy said.

Jurors avoided reporters after delivering their verdict. Several did not immediately return phone calls from The Associated Press. But juror Christine Leventhal told the Star Tribune that Puckett's celebrity status wasn't a factor.

"We never brought it up," she told the newspaper. "He was just a man to us. There just wasn't enough evidence to convict."

Another juror, Rick Mattson, of Brooklyn Park, said they decided quickly Puckett was innocent of sexual misconduct, but the other charges took more time. The focus was on the word "intent," he told KSTP-TV.

"I think bits and pieces of both stories were true," Mattson said. "I don't feel that Mr. Puckett intended to harm her. I think it all started out very playful and I think it ended up in a bad place for both of them."

"I was upset when the verdict was read," juror Carissa Pullis, of Minneapolis, told the Star Tribune. "Personally, I didn't believe his story. But because of how the law is worded, he got away."

Puckett's accuser insisted she told the truth.

"I don't regret coming forward," she told reporters. "Regardless of what the verdict was today, if my telling the truth has helped even one woman not be sexually assaulted, I would do it again - even if it was against a celebrity."

The woman testfied she hasn't consulted an attorney about suing Puckett. But Lori Peterson, an attorney who has represented several women in lawsuits against athletes, said she hopes the woman does sue.

"If you can't throw them in jail, make them bleed green," Peterson said Friday. "That seems to be the only thing they care about - their freedom and their money."

Peterson noted that the legal standard of proof is lower for civil cases, and that while O.J. Simpson was acquitted of killing his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ronald Goldman, he lost the lawsuit filed by their survivors.

Prosecutor Alan Harris and his boss, Hennepin County Attorney Amy Klobuchar, doubted they lost because of Puckett's fame.

"This isn't the result we wanted," Klobuchar said. "But clearly the jury spent a lot of time thinking about this."

"The fact that they deliberated for somewhere around eight hours indicates that the jury gave this very conscientious thought," Harris said.

Puckett said he was glad the trial was over and just wanted to go home.

"Kirby Puckett's got his life back," said his lawyer, Todd Jones.

But what the 43-year-old Puckett plans to do with his life now is unclear. He and his lawyers refused to take questions.

Puckett's image tarnished as his marriage broke up in public, though he denied allegations of domestic violence and infidelity.

His public persona as one of the "nice guys" in sports took another beating when he was charged.

He described himself on the witness stand as retired. His contract as an executive vice president with the Twins wasn't renewed when it expired late last year and he didn't take the Twins up on their offers of a lesser role with the team.

Twins President Dave St. Peter said he expects the team will sit down with Puckett eventually "and address what the future holds. Certainly there is an ongoing desire by the Twins to maintain a connection with Kirby Puckett."

If Puckett has managed his money prudently, his finances should be secure even if he never works again. He earned over $43 million during his career.

While his problems might have hurt him in the endorsement market, even when his popularity was high Puckett never cashed in on his celebrity as much as he could have.

"It's hard to believe," said Pat Forciea, a marketing executive who used to work for the Twins and Golden Gophers men's athletics. "He had very few national endorsements that I'm aware of."

Forciea said that's not likely to change soon.

"It's difficult to picture any opportunities like that happening anytime soon," Forciea said. "I can envision a point in time when endorsement opportunities would return, but I don't think anything would be available in the short term." Puckett told the jury he now spends his time golfing, fishing and doing nothing.

Some ado was made during the trial of Puckett's expanding girth - something that cut both ways. While his accuser and one of her friends disparaged him for it, the defense contended his size made it impossible him to do what he was accused of doing within the cramped confines of the men's room and 20 seconds or so they alleged.

Dwayne Harris, who's operations manager for Lifetime Fitness and was with Puckett the night of the incident, testified that he's been helping Puckett work out at the chain's club in downtown St. Paul.

"Have you been very successful?" Jones asked, drawing laughter from the courtroom.

"Somewhat, yes," Harris replied.

(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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