Judge halts release of Kraft sex video
Video of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft allegedly paying for and receiving sex acts a Florida day spa was on the verge of public release Wednesday when a judge called a critical timeout.
Palm Beach County Judge Joseph Marx blocked the release on a temporary basis Wednesday afternoon and set a hearing for April 29, online court records show.
Earlier in the day, the Palm Beach County State Attorney’s office filed a notice saying it was compelled by the state’s Public Records Act to release the police surveillance video requested by media.
“Absent a court order, the state will be releasing the requested public records once it has retrieved and reviewed the records,” the notice said.
“Although (the law) does not include a specific exemption for obscene or pornographic material, it is the practice of the Office of the State Attorney to pixelate or blur depictions of obscene or pornographic images before releasing such records to the public, absent a court order,” it said.
The judge then stepped in and supplied the temporary court order ahead of his final ruling.
Kraft’s lawyers vehemently argued against release of the video purportedly showing Kraft and more than 20 other defendants inside the Orchids of Asia day spa in Jupiter, Fla.
According to prosecutors, the billionaire widower paid for sexual encounters at the spa on back-to-back days last January.
Kraft’s lawyers said release of the video violated his constitutional right to privacy and could “destroy” his chances of a fair trial.
“If the videos themselves were to be released to the media, the videos would be widely broadcast in Palm Beach, and potential jurors would be prematurely exposed to the central evidence in this case through the prism of negative tabloid reporting,” his lawyers said in a letter to the judge dated Tuesday and obtained by the Daily News.
“Any dissemination of the videos to the media and consequently to the public would severely bias any potential jurors against Mr. Kraft and violate his right to a fair trial,” they argued.
Kraft, 77, has been charged with two misdemeanor counts of soliciting another for prostitution.
Authorities say Kraft was twice caught on video paying for sexual favors at the day spa on Jan. 19 and again on Jan. 20 — the same day the Patriots beat the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC championship game that sent them to the Super Bowl.
In a statement released last month, Kraft said he was “truly sorry.”