Judge Issues A Temporary Protective Order On Release Of Surveillance Video In Robert Kraft Case

A temporary protective order has been placed on the surveillance video of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft at a prostitution house.

Kraft was arrested for solicitation in February as part of a larger FBI investigation into a Jupiter, Florida, spa for human trafficking and prostitution. Kraft was one of 25 individuals charged as a result of the investigation and he is reportedly not even the biggest name attached to this investigation.

Kraft later pleaded not guilty on two counts of solicitation and has been fighting the release of the surveillance video that allegedly shows him at the spa.

Normally, Florida’s public record laws require that law enforcement cannot delay the release of evidence to allow someone to raise a constitutional challenge. Court documents from the prosecution also stated that nothing in Kraft’s case allows the video footage to be withheld. They also clarified that its normal practice to pixelate or blur sexually graphic content released from an investigation.

Kraft’s attorneys have argued that releasing the video would violate his right to privacy and could jeopardize his right to a fair trial. William Burck, one of Kraft’s attorneys, also argued during a hearing that the footage is "basically pornography."

The judge overseeing the case ruled Wednesday that prosecuting attorneys cannot release the footage before April 29.

Judge Joseph Marx told the media during a conference call that "I may be on shaky grounds, media, but right is right. To have this happen without a judge passing judgment on it is just wrong. So I am ordering, I am barring its release until this court ... don't want this released until I've ruled."