WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (WHDH/AP) — The release of surveillance video allegedly showing New England Patriot’s owner Robert Kraft paying for sex acts inside a Florida day spa has been blocked following a temporary protective order issued by a judge.
A hearing has been scheduled for April 29. The video will not be released before then.
Kraft’s defense team filed an emergency motion aimed at blocking the release of the video after court documents released Wednesday indicated that the Palm Beach State Attorney’s Office planned on making the evidence public.
Kraft’s defense team claims the release of the video would “violate Mr. Kraft’s constitutional rights if disseminated, and Mr. Kraft has an obvious and profound stake in any potential disclosure of the sensitive materials at issue, which, among other things, show him naked, and should therefore be permitted to intervene for the sake of protecting his interests and informing the Court’s decision.”
But prosecutors say they are obligated to release video evidence to the media under Florida law and that the state cannot wait for a judge to rule on Kraft’s legal challenge regarding the release of video evidence.
“The legislative scheme of the Public Records Act does not allow a custodian to delay the production of records to allow the resolution of a constitutional challenge to the release of the documents,” the documents said.
The Office of the State Attorney says plans to pixelate and blur depictions of obscene or pornographic images before releasing the video to the public.
Kraft’s attorneys have also argued that the release of the video evidence from inside Orchids of Asia would harm his chance of getting a fair trial.
Attorney Jack Goldberger claims the cameras that officers hid inside the spa violated constitutional privacy protections.
The cameras were installed in January after officers used an undisclosed ruse to gain access to the spa. They then used the cameras to monitor employees and customers over several days.
A number of news outlets, including ABC, CNN, ESPN, and the Associated Press, have requested the videos be publicly released.
Kraft, 77, is accused of paying for sex acts at the spa twice in January. He has pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor solicitation of prostitution.
In a recent apology, he said he has “extraordinary respect for women.”
Kraft, who is worth $6 billion, was chauffeured to the spa on the evening of Jan. 19, where officers secretly recorded him engaging in a sex act and then handing over an undetermined amount of cash, according to police.
He allegedly returned 17 hours later and was again videotaped engaging in sex acts before paying with a $100 bill and another bill before taking off to attend the AFC Championship game in Kansas City, where the Patriots knocked off the Chiefs.
Prosecutors have offered to drop the charges if Kraft and the other men enter a diversion program for first-time offenders.
Twenty-four other men were also allegedly caught on video.
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