A hearing has been set for March 19 on a state motion to reconsider a judge's ruling to suppress evidence obtained through a search warrant against former CDBabes owner Mike Jones in the fall of 2002.
"The matter came for status Feb. 13, at which time we expected the state to dismiss the prosecution," said Jones's attorney, J.D. Obenberger. "Instead, the state was granted leave to file a motion for reconsideration, keeping the issue of suppression alive legally. And that motion was set for a hearing on March 19, three days after a primary election in a…contest between a candidate backed by the incumbent state's attorney and a candidate backed by the incumbent McHenry County Sheriff."
Obenberger said the original suppression order, handed down by Judge Sharon Prather in mid-January, becomes final in 30 days if there is no pending motion to reconsider. The 30-day period expired Feb. 17.
Prather had ordered all evidence gathered in the fall 2002 raids on his home and business suppressed after ruling the raids equaled prior restraint on free expression. The ruling opened up a strong possibility that obscenity and child porn charges against Jones would be dropped.
"The judge determined the search warrant was void and constitutionally infirm and violative of the First Amendment because it was over broad," Obenberger told AVNOnline.com after Prather ordered the evidence suppressed. "There was an ongoing adult erotic business that had a Website, that had DVDs, that sold content, and the warrant authorized police to seize everything - all computers, videos, DVDs, compact discs, floppies - for later examination at the police station, and functionally stopped expression, a prior restraint on speech without particularized probable cause."
Jones sold CDBabes to Gecko Productions in December, saying the damage the case had done to the business was enough to force him to sell rather than try continuing.
Jones did not return a call for comment.
