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Man Sentenced to Prison for Threatening Kobe Accuser
John William Roche (right) arrives at the federal courthouse with his attorney before his sentencing.
A man was sentenced to four months in federal prison Friday for leaving a profanity-laced death threat on the answering machine of the woman (Kate Faber) accusing Kobe Bryant of rape.
John Roche, 23, had pleaded guilty to making a threatening telephone call across state lines. He faced up to six months in prison and a fine up to $10,000.
Instead, Roche was fined $1,000 and will be under two years of supervised release when he leaves prison.
Prosecutors said Roche threatened to assault the woman with a coat hanger and repeatedly vowed to kill her in a message left last summer. It was one of several death threats the woman's lawyer says she has received since accusing the Los Angeles Lakers star of rape.
"I am extremely sorry for what I did," Roche told Judge Walker Miller.
Roche's lawyer, Nathan Chambers, said his client, a student at the University of Iowa at the time, was "drunk out of his mind" when he left the message and was genuinely remorseful. He said Roche, arrested three times for public drunkenness, has a problem with alcohol.
Miller said Roche has substance abuse problems and tested positive for cocaine while out on bond awaiting sentencing.
"I do have optimism that you will learn from this, but I want to emphasize that a lot of people do ruin their lives with alcohol and drugs," Miller said.
Roche's parents, John and Pat, were reluctant to comment afterward. His mother wept during the sentencing.
"We love and pray for our son," Pat Roche said. "That's my comment."
The parents of the accuser also were in the courtroom, and the mother spoke to the judge. "The very graphic and cruel nature of this threat give us every reason to believe he would follow it through," she told Miller.
"My daughter is dealing with the trauma of sexual assault and this exacerbates that trauma," the mother said. Later, the woman's parents said through a spokeswoman that they sympathize with Roche's family.
Chambers argued his client was unfairly singled out because another man found the woman's name and number on the Internet and made the call. He and a third man also left messages, the attorney said.
Chambers declined to comment when asked if he will appeal.
Bryant, 25, has pleaded not guilty to felony sexual assault. He has said he had consensual sex with the woman, then 19, at the Vail-area resort where she worked last summer.
If convicted, Bryant faces four years to life in prison or 20 years to life on probation.
Source: AP