Red Light District says it intends to defend a lawsuit filed against it by Kid Rock over the proposed distribution of a sex video showing him and fellow rocker Scott Stapp having sex with groupies in 1999.
Red Light attorney Peter M. Falkenstein said the company is within its rights to market and distribute the video.
“We intend to fully contest this matter at the next hearing and for as long as it takes to vindicate my client’s First Amendment rights,” he said.
Attorneys for Kid Rock sued Red Light last Tuesday after the company announced it had obtained the tapes of Rock and Stapp engaging in sex with strippers. The suit seeks a permanent court order banning the sale or distribution of the tape.
William Horton, who represents Rock, told the Detroit Free Press that his client doesn’t deny the authenticity of the tapes, but said they were being used without his client’s consent.
A court order filed last week, covering only a 40-second clip of the tape, remains in effect until a court hearing is held in late March. The company had withdrawn the clip two weeks ago when it received a similar order from Stapp’s lawyers, the company said.
In his suit, Rock contends the tapes were illegally obtained by Red Light and is seeking to stop its sale or distribution.
“This tape was not stolen, as has been wrongly suggested,” Falkenstein said.
“My client was informed that from the moment it was filmed the tape was always in the possession of the videographer, a non-participant who owns the rights to the video.”
Falkenstein said the taping occurred with Rock’s knowledge and those of others involved. He added that there were no stipulations on how the tape would be used.
Rock, whose real name is Robert Richie, said in his lawsuit that the video would remain in Stapp's possession and not be displayed publicly.
Red Light owner David Joseph would not comment, but the company’s Los Angeles-based attorney Ray Tamaddon said the company is preparing to make its case at a hearing next month.
“A lot of celebrity tapes in the past have been obtained through questionable means, but though I can’t reveal the source, the source of the tape is legitimate,” he said.
A court hearing scheduled for last Friday was postponed until late March.
