A judge has ruled that videos which allegedly show New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft receiving sexual services at a massage parlor in Florida must be withheld from the public until the case is resolved. Several media organizations had filed a lawsuit demanding that the Jupiter Police Department release the tapes because they are public record.
Kraft objected to the release of the videos, arguing that they are “basically pornography" and their public dissemination would make it impossible to pick an impartial jury.
Judge Leonard Hanser agreed that the tapes are part of the public record but ruled that releasing them would harm Kraft's right to a fair trial.
“The court finds that preventing access at this time to the videotapes sought by (the media organizations) is necessary to prevent a serious and imminent threat to the administration of justice,” Judge Hanser wrote.
The video footage will be released once a jury has been seatedi n the case or if Kraft accepts a plea deal or if the charges against him are dropped.
Kraft was charged with two counts of soliciting a prostitute after he was allegedly captured on surveillance cameras paying for sexual services at Orchids of Asia Day Spa during two visits in January. Kraft was one of 25 men charged following a months-long investigation into several day spas across the state.
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