WEST PALM BEACH, FLORIDA – APRIL 12: William Burck (left) and Alex Spiro, part of the defense team for New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, emerge from a court hearing on Friday.
Prosecutors are asking a judge to hold New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft’s defense attorneys in contempt for allegedly lying and intimidating a witness during a motion hearing related to the misdemeanor prostitution charges Kraft faces.
Alex Spiro and William Burck, Kraft’s attorneys, are accused of tampering with an officer who testified in the hearing on May 1 about pulling over Kraft during a traffic stop.
“Spiro repeatedly challenged Officer Kimbark with accusations that his body camera had recorded him telling another officer during the stop previous to that of defendant Kraft that the lack of probable cause for the stop did not matter because he will just ‘make some shit up,’” Assistant State Attorney Craig Williams wrote in the motion.
Undercover surveillance video purportedly shows Kraft at the Orchids of Asia Day Spa engaged in a sex act. Jupiter Police Officer Scott Kimbark pulled Kraft over in his vehicle after he left the spa.
The officer claims he spoke with Spiro in the courtroom hallway after being questioned on the stand on May 1, according to records.
“Spiro stated ‘I have a video of you saying stupid shit,’” Officer Kimbark wrote in an official statement. “His facial expressions as he smirked and his raised eyebrows along with his accusing statement intimidated me to believe I had done something wrong.”
Prosecutors say Spiro was prohibited from speaking with Officer Kimbark at the time and then threatened him in an extortion attempt.
“Spiro further advised advised that I seemed really cool and he felt conflicted to use it against me. Spiro stated he had it in his back pocket,” Officer Kimbark wrote.
When called back to the stand later in the day, Officer Kimbark was unable to deny he made the statement over the radio.
“I could not swear under oath, even though I knew I wouldn’t say anything like that, because of fear he already told me he had a video of me saying stupid shit,'” Kimbark said.
William Burck denied the allegations in a statement to Law&Crime, calling this “an act of desperation” by State Attorney Dave Aronberg‘s office.
“They know what they filed is false and misleading to the court but they did it anyway because they are desperate. That’s because they want to deflect attention away from their illegal and unconstitutional methods in investigating and prosecuting this case,” Burck said. “They first falsely accused Robert Kraft of being involved with human trafficking and then had to back off. Now they are falsely accusing the defense lawyers of lying to the court. It’s pathetic.”
“But it takes a lot more than State Attorney Dave Aronberg and the lawyers he’s got in court to intimidate Quinn Emanuel lawyers from doing their jobs in a vigorous and ethical manner,” Burck added.
Kraft is facing two misdemeanor charges for soliciting prostitution. He has pleaded not guilty.
[Image via Patrick Dove – Pool/Getty Images]
