It Looks Like Justice Will Be Done and Mr. Kraft's Tug Rule Charges Will be Dropped
Source - Florida prosecutors said Monday that they won’t appeal a court’s decision blocking video that allegedly shows New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft paying for massage parlor sex, making it likely the charges against him will be dropped.
If the state challenged the decision to the Florida Supreme Court and lost, it could have “broader, negative implications” on future law enforcement investigations beyond the Kraft case, the Florida Attorney General’s Office said.
Last month, the Florida 4th District Court of Appeal found that Jupiter police violated the rights of Kraft and others when they secretly installed video cameras inside massage rooms at the Orchids of Asia Day Spa in early 2019. The court then blocked use of the video footage at trial.
“Based on that analysis ... the decision was made not to seek further discretionary review,” attorney general spokeswoman Kylie Mason said in an email to The Associated Press.
The state’s decision means the charges against Kraft and about 20 other men will likely be dismissed. The recordings, which have not been made public, are the only known potential evidence that the men paid for sex.
To use the obvious sports analogy, I'm not one to spike the football until I've crossed the goal line and the officials have confirmed the ruling on the field of a touchdown. Or to make the obvious football team owner analogy, I'm not going to come down out of my luxury box to dance on the field up 28-3.
As good as this sounds, it's not official until it's official. Never underestimate the power of corrupt Florida politicians disguising themselves as principled lawmen to keep framing innocent men for their own gains.
This is a sad day if, say, you're John Henry whose Boston Globe was suing to for right to see the illegally obtained video and post it on his news outlet's website. I'm sure it's disappointing to his declining readership too. But since most of his subscribers are like my elderly mother-in-law who gets her news printed on dead trees and left on her front steps every morning, not many of them would've seen the video anyway. Still, it's got to be crushing for him not to get to see his fellow owner have his right to privacy egregiously violated. With frienemies like John Henry, who needs actual enemies?
For everyone else, this is great news. If you're all about justice, equal protection under the law, and a system that protects individuals against overzealous prosecutors who abuse their power in order to pander for votes, this is a landmark case. Something that will be studied in law schools and taught in police academies for generations to come.
For the good people of Florida, this is a day to remember. Never forget how the officials you elected to protect and to serve pulled fire alarms so they could empty out legally licensed businesses and slip hidden cameras into private rooms where law abiding citizens get undressed. How they watched these tapes of ordinary taxpayers - male and female - getting perfectly legal massages hoping to find the ones - male and female - who tipped extra for an orgasm from a consenting adult. Never forget how they lied to you about human sex trafficking. And how they only admitted they knew all along there was zero trafficking involved when they were forced to by the overwhelming evidence. Never forget how they spent your tax dollars on this investigation of a misdemeanor offense and charged it as a felony once they caught a famous, world renown philanthropist in a shameless headline grab. And then later reduced the charge back to a misdemeanor on a Friday afternoon during the holidays with no press release.
Mostly remember how I'm still waiting to hear from Martin County Sheriff William D. Snyder and Jupiter Police Detective Andrew D. Sharp, who refused to meet with me or even return my calls.
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Actually, you know what? Never mind that last part. Forget about me. I'm not the hero here. You used that word, not me. I'm just the guy who left his family for a few days, traveled to Florida, got a (perfectly legal) message at an Asian spa and traveled to police stations to get answers and strike a blow for justice.
The real hero is my friend RKK who refused to back down. Who denied himself the easy path of admitting guilt and paying a fine and instead chose the more difficult, more expensive but ultimately more gratifying path of fighting against tyranny and oppression. Today is a day to be grateful. Once this case gets dropped, we'll all be a little freer. God bless America.