LOS ANGELES, CA — Even though his first trip to court ended in a mistrial when the trial judge recused himself, a federal judge on Monday refused to dismiss obscenity charges against adult content producer Ira Isaacs.U.S. District Judge George King ruled the alleged presence of pornography on 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Chief Judge Alex Kozinski’s personal website and Kozinski’s subsequent declaration of a mistrial were not reason enough to consider double-jeopardy attached to Isaacs’ case.
However, King declined to set a new trial date because he said he expected the defendant to file an appeal immediately.
“If a timely notice of appeal is filed, we shall await the results of appellate review,” King wrote in his decision. “If no timely notice of appeal is filed, we shall set this matter for retrial.”
Isaacs’ attorney, Roger Diamond, confirmed he would file an appeal within 10 days. He also said it wasn’t his client’s fault the original judge declared a mistrial, so his client should not be penalized by being tried a second time for the same crime.
“We didn’t ask for recusal,” Diamond said September 8th during arguments before King. “Our position is Kozinski shouldn’t have recused himself. The plug was pulled.”
The Department of Justice prosecutor assigned to the case argued double jeopardy had not attached to the case because the trial barely had started before Kozinski pulled the plug.
Isaacs stands accused of producing and distributing hardcore adult content depicting bestiality and defecation. If convicted, he faces a fine of up to $1 million and as many as 20 years in federal prison.
His original trial, which began in June, was halted after the Los Angeles Times published a report revealing the contents of Kozinski’s personal Web space: sexually explicit material, some of it implying bestiality. Subsequently Kozinski asked for a panel of judges to investigate his conduct. No determination has been made public.
