Robert Kraft seeks ‘evidence materially favorable’ to his misdemeanor case
Kraft has not accepted a plea deal because it would have obligated him to admit that prosecutors would win the case if it went to trial.
Robert K. Kraft, the owner of the New England Patriots, has asked the prosecutor who charged him with solicitation of prostitution to turn over “evidence materially favorable” to his case.
The request, made by Kraft’s lawyers, is the latest salvo in a high-profile fight over two misdemeanors that allege that Kraft paid for sex in late January at a massage parlor in Jupiter, Florida. While he does not deny being at the massage parlor, Kraft insists that he did nothing illegal, and that much of the evidence being used against him was improperly obtained by police.
Kraft has not accepted a plea deal from the Palm Beach County state attorney, Dave Aronberg, because it would have obligated him to admit that prosecutors would win the case if it went to trial. Since then, his legal team has filed a number of motions to keep private and suppress evidence in the case, including surveillance video of Kraft inside the massage parlor. Kraft’s lawyers contend that the police knew that no human trafficking occurred inside the massage parlor, yet told a judge that it was in fact going on as a way to obtain a search warrant and install cameras inside the building.
In a letter sent to Aronberg on Wednesday, Kraft’s lawyers asked for information on all people who were secretly recorded inside the massage parlor but who were not charged with a crime. The lawyers also want “all information casting doubt on any claim that those working at the Spa were involved in or victims of human trafficking.”
The letter includes a footnote that says that the state attorney’s office “has already confirmed and conceded that there is no evidence of human trafficking.”
Asked if the state attorney’s office would provide the requested evidence, a spokesman for Aronberg’s office noted that there was a hearing on the matter Friday.
Kraft’s lawyers have asked for the evidence by the end of Friday.
The two sides will meet in court Friday to discuss a motion filed by news media companies, including The New York Times, to oppose Kraft’s request that video surveillance footage and other evidence be kept private.
