Florida prosecutors just raised the stakes in New England\u00a0Patriots owner Robert Kraft\u2019s<\/a>\u00a0fight against prostitution charges.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n It\u2019s been nearly a year since the 78-year-old part-time Palm Beach resident paid for sex acts at a Jupiter massage parlor likened to a brothel.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n But now lawyers for the state are arguing for the first time that Kraft \u2014 charged with\u00a0two misdemeanor counts of soliciting prostitution<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 actually committed a felony.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The latest court filing from the Attorney General\u2019s Office suggests Kraft could face a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison, if the state wins its appeal of a lower court order favoring the billionaire.<\/p>\n Elevating multiple misdemeanors to a felony would be an unusual move, for sure.<\/p>\n \u201cI literally have never seen that enhancement used in any county,\u201d said veteran criminal defense attorney Jack Fleischman, who is not connected with the litigation. \u201cIt has to be rare.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n So, for that matter, is the high-profile Kraft case.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Observers across the country view it<\/a>\u00a0as a constitutional test that pits police powers to investigate crimes \u2014 specifically the authority to use secret cameras \u2014 against individual privacy rights.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Florida is challenging a judge\u2019s order<\/a>\u00a0in May that tossed all evidence against Kraft, including sex videos that cops surreptitiously recorded during their prostitution sting.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The judge ruled police did not have a lawful \u201csneak-and-peek\u201d warrant when surveillance cameras ran continuously for five days at Orchids of Asia Day Spa.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Kraft took Bentley-chauffeured trips to the business on Jan. 19 and 20, which was the day before and the morning of the American Football Conference Championship game. Reports say he\u00a0showed a Super Bowl ring to an officer<\/a>\u00a0and asked the cop if he was a Miami Dolphins fan.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Kraft emerged as the most well-known figure from undercover investigations of 10 spas around the state. Nearly 300 men were charged overall last February, along with owners and employees.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Riding on the court outcome is the possibility that Kraft could be hit with sanctions from the National Football League. He has already apologized to his family, friends and fans \u201cwho rightfully hold me to a higher standard.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The legal fight is now at the 4th District Court of Appeal in West Palm Beach. Lawyers for the state have requested an opportunity for both sides to iron out their positions in person, before a three-judge panel makes a ruling.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Kraft\u2019s representatives most recently slammed the state\u2019s lawyers for violating a rule that restricts page counts in pleadings. The state had asked for special permission to file a 28-page argument, which is 13 pages longer than typically allowed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cThat the State here is seeking to criminally prosecute one of its citizens \u2014 using evidence obtained during a dragnet video surveillance scheme that breaks from Fourth Amendment constraints agreed on by other courts \u2014 hardly entitles it to special dispensation or sympathy,\u201d wrote Kraft lawyers Frank Shepherd and William Burck.<\/p>\n In response, the appeals court on Monday ordered the state to abide by the 15-page maximum and re-file it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The state Attorney General\u2019s office says it won\u2019t discuss a pending case.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cAs litigation is ongoing, we cannot comment at this time,\u201d Press Secretary Kylie Mason wrote in an e-mail Thursday.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Kraft\u2019s legal representatives could not be reached this week.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n But the extra-long document from the state remained in the docket for all to see, until Friday. In it, the prosecutors took aim at one of Kraft\u2019s main positions \u2014 that police went to extreme and unnecessary lengths over simple misdemeanor crimes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cThe investigation at issue here culminated in numerous felony charges against the owner, manager, and employees of the Spa,\u201d the state\u2019s attorneys wrote on Dec. 17. \u201cIn addition, any person who purchased prostitution services on multiple days, as Mr. Kraft did, committed a felony.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Deputy Solicitor General Jeffrey Paul DeSousa also made the point that the police had a much wider scope than low-level, money-for-sex transactions.<\/p>\n \u201cFinally, this Court need not turn a blind eye to the fact that investigations into illicit prostitution schemes often yield evidence of more serious crimes, including the modern-day slavery that underlies the felony offense of sex trafficking<\/a>,\u201d DeSousa wrote.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Kraft\u2019s representatives have accused authorities of\u00a0misleading the public about human trafficking<\/a>\u00a0at the massage parlor, before prosecutors admitted they can\u2019t prove it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Officials said state health department inspections, before the sting, strongly suggested that sex workers from China were living at the business. Later, prosecutors explained they were unable to file trafficking charges because the workers declined to cooperate with investigators.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The main battle in the pending appeal focuses on whether the warrant for the stealth cameras was proper.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Palm Beach County<\/a>\u00a0Judge Leonard Hanser decided the warrant was flawed because it didn\u2019t require the officers to \u201cminimize\u201d their surveillance by focusing entirely on criminal acts.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n At least four people \u2014 women and men \u2014 were videotaped receiving real massages with their clothes off while the cameras were rolling. During the same period, 35 videos captured some sexual activity, records show.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Seeking to overturn Hanser\u2019s ruling, the Attorney General\u2019s office contends \u201cmore stringent minimization procedures were not required\u201d by law given the circumstances.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The appeal urges that \u201cpolice must be afforded greater leeway\u201d to fight crime, \u201cthough it is of course preferable that no customer be recorded receiving a lawful massage.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cMr. Kraft\u2019s guilt is a virtual certainty\u201d based on the massage parlor videos, the state asserts in its bid to use the footage against him.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Lawyers for Kraft argue the \u201cdrastic, invasive\u201d\u00a0snooping was out of bounds<\/a>\u00a0for \u201cinvestigating alleged offenses like prostitution.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n They say they want this case to be over soon, because the \u201cspecter of renewed criminal prosecutions hangs like a Sword of Damocles\u201d over their wealthy client.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n![\"People](\"https:\/\/www.sun-sentinel.com\/resizer\/OjA3Cn4XbbTzGDlSsMGt83GEMzg=\/800x533\/top\/arc-anglerfish-arc2-prod-tronc.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/IKCQ5EU7LJCWLBHYZENJRKTFKM.JPG\")
<\/div>Appeal heats up<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Was warrant unlawful?<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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