(09-08) 13:44 PDT MARTINEZ -- A rape case brought against a former Contra Costa County sex crimes prosecutor is headed for a secret grand jury, angering defense attorneys who wanted to challenge the alleged victim in open court.
Defense attorneys for Michael Gressett, 52, had won a key ruling last month when a judge said they could question Gressett's accuser - a onetime colleague in the district attorney's office - during a public preliminary hearing. At the end of such a hearing, a judge decides whether there is enough evidence to hold a defendant for trial.
But in a letter to defense attorneys dated Sept. 1, state prosecutors said they would ask a grand jury to indict Gressett next month and send him to a jury trial, negating the need for a preliminary hearing.
The letter did not give a reason for the move, and Deputy Attorney General Peter Flores Jr. declined to comment Tuesday. In the past, prosecutors have said they want to protect the alleged victim from the trauma of testifying.
Defense attorney Daniel Russo said the action is unfair to Gressett and disrespectful to the judge in the case.
"This is a way of avoiding the daylight," said Russo, who will not be allowed inside the grand jury proceeding but can ask for exculpatory evidence to be presented. "They're afraid that their case, once it gets in the light, will dissolve."
The 30-year-old alleged victim, now a prosecutor in another county, told authorities that she wanted to sleep with Gressett, but objected to the type of sex he initiated during a lunchtime encounter May 8, 2008, at his Martinez townhouse.
She said he had forcibly sodomized her, held a gun to her head, handcuffed her and forced ice into her.
Gressett - who was fired in July - said a gun, cuffs and ice were brought out but only in a playful way. His attorneys said Gressett's accuser has a history of trouble and has changed her account of the alleged rape. The Chronicle is not naming her because she is allegedly a rape victim.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/09/09/BAMJ19K1SL.DTL#ixzz0Ru5ujxAK
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