Look, I don't want to talk about this any more than you do, but I suppose it's almost appropriate that this is the first story that comes out on what feels like the first day of what is going to be an awfully difficult month for all of us to stomach.
Katina Powell, the self-described former escort at the center of the Louisville men's basketball recruiting scandal, will meet for a second time Monday with NCAA investigators, her attorney told Outside the Lines.
"Ms. Powell was contacted by the NCAA to meet to answer questions that have arisen during the course of the investigation," attorney Larry Wilder said. "It seems that the NCAA is looking to close some of the newly opened doors."
Powell first spoke with NCAA investigators in mid-November and has allowed them to review her personal journals and phone records, which served as the foundation for her tell-all book, "Breaking Cardinal Rules: Basketball and the Escort Queen."
"When the NCAA met with Ms. Powell, initially she gave them access to her journals in order to corroborate her prior statements," Wilder said.
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While Powell has been willing to meet with NCAA investigators, she remains unwilling to cooperate with University of Louisville police, who, according to a school spokesperson, are still actively investigating the case.
A spokesperson for the Jefferson County, Kentucky, Commonwealth Attorney's office said Friday that the case remains open.
Another attorney for Powell, Bart McMahon, says the request for a second meeting is not unexpected.
Bart McMahon, one of Powell's attorneys, said the NCAA requested the meeting because investigators had "follow-up questions based on their investigation" since they first met with Powell in November.
McMahon believes the NCAA wants to "corroborate" and "clarify" some information learned during the investigation. He said the NCAA's request for another meeting was not a surprise.
In November, Powell, author of "Breaking Cardinal Rules: Basketball and the Escort Queen," spoke to investigators for five hours, outlining her account of what happened from beginning to end at Minardi Hall.
Like the last time, the interview on Monday, which will take place at attorney Larry Wilder's office, will not be recorded, McMahon said. Representative for UofL will not be at the meeting, he added.
Whatever has to be done to get us closer to the point where this is all over is what I'm in favor of. If this is such an instance, then so be it.
