UNITED STATES
CNN
January 30, 2020
By Father Edward Beck
Father Edward L. Beck, C.P., is a Roman Catholic priest and a religion commentator for CNN. The views expressed in this commentary are his own.
There is a line in the Leonard Cohen song “Anthem” that reads, “There is a crack in everything; that’s how the light gets in.” Kobe Bryant had some cracks, but there was bright, redemptive light there, too.
Bryant was a practicing Catholic who took his faith seriously, walking the talk. He attended Mass on Sundays — and some weekdays, too. He supported multiple charitable causes, including his own family foundation dedicated to improving the lives of youth and families in need.
He said his faith is what got him through the tough times. These would include a grave and hurtful one of his own making: a rape allegation against him in 2003 by a 19-year-old Eagle, Colorado, hotel employee.
At the time of the alleged sexual assault, in a troubling series of events, Bryant claimed that he thought the sex was consensual (even though he admitted to police that he had not explicitly asked for consent); his legal team tried to discredit the accuser by portraying her as promiscuous, and said her name in open court multiple times; and the court system leaked it to the media.
Ultimately, prosecutors dropped the criminal case, citing the woman’s unwillingness to continue to cooperate. She did however file a civil lawsuit against Bryant that resulted in an undisclosed settlement.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.