Conspiracy charges against the two owners of www.bigdoggie.net, a site dedicated to escorts, and racketeering charges against four women linked to the site have been dismissed by the judge overseeing the case because the defendants were denied their right to a speedy trial. rn rn
Felony defendants have a right to trial within 175 days of arrest, and the charges thrown out Friday involved defendants arrested in June. Prosecutors said they would appeal. rnrn
Charles S. Kelly and Steve Lipson, the owners of the site, were released on a 65,000 dollar bail for running the site that carried advertising from prostitutes and billed itself as "The Net's No. 1 Escort Resource." Customers paid to access the solicitations.rnrn
Defense attorneys argued the site is protected under the First Amendment right to free speech.rnrn
The delays were largely the result of the state's efforts to keep confidential the identities of six witnesses, some married, well-known figures in Tampa area business and politics, including the former head of the county Democratic party. Judge Debra Behnke ruled in October that the six witnesses' names must be made public. rnrn
The cases were scheduled to go to trial in December, but Behnke postponed them on the grounds that prosecutors had not fully complied with her order regarding the witnesses' names. rnrn
For a related story, click here:rnhttp://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=562&ncid=757&e=10&u=/ap/20030112/ap_on_hi_te/internet_prostitution
