Video surveillance of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft’s visit to a South Florida massage parlor was an “extreme” act by local police that violated his constitutional rights, a state appeals court ruled on Wednesday.
Prosecutors had appealed a lower court ruling that prevented them from using the video against Kraft, who was accused of soliciting prostitution. Kraft has pleaded not guilty in the case.
The ruling hurts the misdemeanor case against Kraft by banning, pending further possible appeal, the use of videos allegedly showing men paying for sex acts at the Orchids of Asia spa, in a part of South Florida where many affluent Americans have homes.
“The type of law enforcement surveillance utilized in these cases is extreme,” judges in Florida’s Fourth District Court of Appeals said, affirming that trial courts were correct to suppress the videos.
The judges cited Fourth Amendment rights prohibiting unreasonable searches and seizures.
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.
