"As for what if any charges Abbitt could face, O'Neill couldn't comment.
"That's a legal opinion that both myself and the Attorney General's Office share, and we've communicated that to the police department."
O'Neill said he can't share that opinion publicly.
"I'm prohibited from saying what my opinion is and what the Attorney General's opinion is on the case," stated O'Neill. "The rules of ethics and professional conduct prohibit me from doing so.""
REPORTER MAC INGRAHAM: WFMY NEWS 2;
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"Winston-Salem, NC -- Forsyth County District Attorney Jim O'Neill said his office is reviewing the Joseph Abbitt case," the WFMY News 2 story by reporter Mac Ingraham published on October 8, 2010, begins under the heading, "District Attorney: Abbitt Case Is Under Review."
"As for what if any charges Abbitt could face, O'Neill couldn't comment," the story continues.
""That's a legal opinion that both myself and the Attorney General's Office share, and we've communicated that to the police department."
O'Neill said he can't share that opinion publicly.
"I'm prohibited from saying what my opinion is and what the Attorney General's opinion is on the case," stated O'Neill. "The rules of ethics and professional conduct prohibit me from doing so."
This week, the Winston-Salem Police Department announced additional DNA testing made Abbitt a prime suspect for the second time.
Abbitt spent 14 years in prison on charges he raped two teenaged sisters.
He was released in September 2009 when DNA evidence excluded him as the rapist.
The District Attorney said he knew of the additional testing, and his office has the case.
O'Neill told us the police department's news conference Wednesday about the case was unexpected.
"I was very surprised when I saw in the news that in fact they had held a press conference and we're talking about the guilt or innocence of another individual and the facts and evidence in this case. It's exactly what I had counseled them against doing."
But in an email, police Chief Scott Cunningham said "We felt we had a duty to the public to report this information.""
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The story can be found at:
http://www.digtriad.com/news/local/article.aspx?storyid=149028&catid=57
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PUBLISHER'S NOTE: The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be accessed at:
http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith
For a breakdown of some of the cases, issues and controversies this Blog is currently following, please turn to:
http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=120008354894645705&postID=8369513443994476774
Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; hlevy15@gmail.com;
