Boulder Lawyer To Represent Kavanaugh Accuser

BOULDER, CO - John Clune, a Boulder lawyer who previously represented sexual assault victims in high profile cases against NBA star Kobe Bryant and Florida State football standout James Winston, has been confirmed to be the lawyer representing Boulder's Debbie Ramirez, the latest woman to accuse Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct.

Multiple sources have confirmed that Clune of the Boulder law firm Hutchison Black and Cook LLC will represent Ramirez. Clune's addition to her legal team is a change from earlier Monday, when a sign posted on the recycling bin noted that she had "no comment" for reporters and that former Boulder County District Attorney Stan Garnett would represent her.

Clune is a prominent civil rights lawyer who specializes in Title IX litigation. He is the attorney who helped rape accusers of star athletes like Bryant, Johan Santana and Winston. Together with partner Blaine Kerr, he created what the Washington Post reported in 2015 to be a "seismic change" in the handling of sex crimes at American colleges. A Daily Camera article the same year said the duo "have made Boulder the de facto Title IX litigation center of the country by advocating for victims and taking on powerful universities and big-time athletic programs."

Meanwhile, though she herself has asked for privacy, local sources have been coming forward to speak to Ramirez's integrity.

“I’m heartbroken because I know what they are going to do to her,” Lisa Calderon, Ramirez's former supervisor at Boulder's Safehouse Progressive Alliance for Nonviolence told the Colorado Independent. “I know what’s in store for her. I know what’s in store for women. After working with victims for 20 years first in my role as legal director for victims, women (often) don’t come forward because they’re afraid.”

For his part, Kavanaugh has staunchly denied the claims by both Ramirez and original accuser Christine Blasey Ford, who is set to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee this Thursday.

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