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New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft arrested for soliciting prostitution

Discussion in 'Football: NFL, College, High School' started by NewRoxFan, Feb 22, 2019.

  1. dobro1229

    dobro1229 Contributing Member

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  2. J.R.

    J.R. Member

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    Prosecutors have offered New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and several other men a deal in which charges would be dropped for soliciting prostitution, a source told the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday.

    But there is a catch: Kraft and the other men would have to review the evidence and admit they would have been proven guilty at trial, the paper reported.

    Kraft pleaded not guilty to two misdemeanor counts of first-degree solicitation. His court date is set for March 28.

    It's not known whether Kraft or the others will accept the conditions of the deal, which includes completing 100 hours of community service, screening for sexually transmitted diseases, completing a course about prostitution and paying some court costs, the paper reported.
     
  3. tinman

    tinman Contributing Member
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    That's another happy ending for Kraft
     
  4. Nook

    Nook Member

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    He never should have been charged to begin with.
     
  5. REEKO_HTOWN

    REEKO_HTOWN I'm Rich Biiiiaaatch!

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    Did you read the report. They only way he can take the deal is if he admits he committed a crime lol.
     
  6. PhiSlammaJamma

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    If you put the dick in a box first, and then get your happy ending, how could a jury connect without a doubt that your dick was in fact the dick in question. There's reasonable doubt.
     
  7. J.R.

    J.R. Member

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    http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/26315681/kraft-files-motion-suppress-evidence

    Attorneys for New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft filed a motion Wednesday to suppress evidence -- notably the video evidence -- in his solicitation of prostitution case, according to a source.

    The motion is an effort to make sure that the surveillance video, described as graphic and damning, isn't released if he doesn't reach a plea deal with prosecutors. It also is a warning shot to prosecutors that Kraft's legal team will try to go after the state's case by saying there was no probable cause to collect the evidence in the first place.

    The Palm Beach County State Attorney's office offered Kraft and 24 other men a diversion deal Monday night that would allow the men to avoid prosecution if they meet certain conditions. A diversion deal would expunge their cases and seal all evidence.

    Under the initial deal that was offered, prosecutors would drop misdemeanor solicitation charges if the men pay $5,000 fines for each offense (Kraft was charged with two), complete an educational course about prostitution, submit to testing for sexually transmitted diseases and admit in court that they would have been found guilty had the case gone to trial.

    It's that last point that could derail a deal.

    A source close to Kraft said, "That's not going to happen," and said the 77-year-old would rather fight the charges in court than admit to a crime. Sources said that the two sides were continuing to negotiate and that Kraft had not rejected the deal outright.

    If Kraft accepts a diversion program offer, it means that, in a legal sense, the incident never happened. But he would also essentially be admitting to the facts of the case, which alleges that he received sexual services at the Orchids of Asia Day Spa in Jupiter, Florida, on Jan. 19 and 20. Kraft has never specifically denied receiving sexual services at the spa, but through a spokesperson denied having committed a crime.

    Kraft is said to be especially concerned about having his name connected to accusations of sex trafficking. When law enforcement officials first announced the arrests of spa operators last month, they described it as a sex trafficking case. But documents show that the two women Kraft is accused of receiving services from likely were not trafficked: one is 39 and was charged with operating illegal activity at the spa; the other is 58. Both have valid driver's licenses, and both are licensed as massage therapists by the state of Florida. So far, no one in the case has been charged with human trafficking.
     
    #107 J.R., Mar 20, 2019
    Last edited: Mar 20, 2019
  8. zeeshan2

    zeeshan2 Member

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  9. PhiSlammaJamma

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    The thing about capturing video to capture human trafficking has never made much sense to me. I mean if they were trafficking victims, why would they let the rapes continue just so they could build a case. It should be about saving the victims and getting them the hell out of the situation. So I just need an explanation as to why they would wait to capture 20 Johns on video if they indeed thought there were victims getting raped over and over and over again while they watched, and on their watch. I've just never been able to buy that part of the case.
     
    #109 PhiSlammaJamma, Mar 20, 2019
    Last edited: Mar 20, 2019
  10. Brando2101

    Brando2101 Contributing Member

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    To prove they are sex workers.
     
  11. Nook

    Nook Member

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    Yes and he never should have been charged to begin with. It is highly unlikely that the video evidence is admissible and the DA knows it.

    I don’t doubt that he had sex with prostitutes but the question is can they prove it and does the DA want to spend the tax dollars to do so.
     
  12. Buck Turgidson

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    These cases are never really about prosecuting the johns anyway, it's public embarrassment as a way to curb demand. They're looking for the owners and the people who supply girls to the owners.
     
  13. Nook

    Nook Member

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    My best friend in high school happened to be Korean and his father happened to be highly involved in organized crime.

    Amongst their activities was Asian "nude modeling", "24 hour photography" and "spas". As a result I ended up learning quite a bit about how they operate, where the girls come from (at least 20 years ago) and how the money is made and distributed. I also had some dealings with prostitution and human exploitation when I worked for the Feds after law school.

    As far as who supplies the girls, it gets confusing depending on the nationality. Hispanic girls used to be very common twenty years ago, with Eastern European girls being common in the high end establishments and a high level escorts.

    There were certainly girls from Cambodia and Korean in the past. They usually worked what was called "The Circuit". They were brought over her legally or illegally. Back them most the girls knew they were going to be prostitutes. They were given their "papers" and 20% of their earnings after working on the circuit, from Houston through New Orleans and up through the Mid West.

    I never got involved in all of it, but you would be surprised how many guys that you would never expect would date some of the girls or sleep with them. Usually they would pay $100. My interaction was limited to conversations with my then friend, seeing him pick up money during the day from spots a few times and then one time going out to dinner with him at 1 am and having him stop and we went inside. I was very naive. The security was provided by an off duty officer BTW.
     
  14. biff17

    biff17 Member

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    why shouldn't he have been charged?
     
  15. Nook

    Nook Member

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    I doubt the legality of the whole operation.

    The standard for police to put hidden camera's inside a private business is very high in the USA.

    Second, most likely and permission they got from the court is likely based on human trafficking. The problem is that there is no evidence of human trafficking, as both women are US citizens and licenses as therapists.

    Last the actual stops are likely illegal as well.
     
    KingCheetah and biff17 like this.
  16. KingCheetah

    KingCheetah Contributing Member

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    The whole 'human trafficking' angle of the Florida police seemed dubious at best -- more like an opportunity to elevate the status of their sting.
     
  17. biff17

    biff17 Member

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    you seem to be making assumptions about things that have not been given as evidence yet.

    I am sure these 2 sex workers where not the only ones, basing this whole case on them is ignoring what we know usually happens in these establishments.

    I am not saying there is definitely a case here but you seem to be cherry picking things.
     
  18. Nook

    Nook Member

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    Yes, there is human trafficking to some degree but these two women were not being trafficked. They are in their 40's and are US citizens and are licensed professional massage therapists. The police attempted to make a big deal out of the women living in the business. While it is against the law, it isn't really THAT uncommon. I don't doubt that the business is ran by criminals, but the narrative painted by the police to the media appears to be a bit out of hand.

    Also, the police and the DA know their entire operation was compromised and likely illegal. They claim that there is wide spread human trafficking through this spa location, yet they videotaped the operation for 9 months without freeing sex slaves? They pull over (illegally) the patrons of the spa to get information to implicate them in a crime? That is misbehavior by the PD, they are not supposed to do that.

    This is supposed to be a massive criminal enterprise between China and the USA, stretching between Florida and NY and California and the claim is that human sex trafficking between China and the USA totals 20 million dollars a year. It doesn't add up.

    Human trafficking happens I am sure (it did happen 20 years ago for sure) but this case really isn't a prime example.
     
  19. J.R.

    J.R. Member

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    Robert Kraft’s attorney, William Burck, to ESPN (1/2): “There was no human trafficking and law enforcement knows it. The video and the traffic stop were illegal and law enforcement just doesn’t want to admit it...”

    Robert Kraft’s attorney, William Burck, to ESPN (2/2): “The state attorney needs to step up and do the right thing and investigate how the evidence in this case was obtained.”
     
  20. Nook

    Nook Member

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    Yup, the police department acted illegally and incompetently. Jobs should be lost.

    At the end of the day an 80 year old man got a handjob from two 50 year old women and he paid them several hundred bucks for 10 minutes.

    Hell there are posters in the D&D that would give an old man a tug for a couple hundred bucks.
     

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