Jurors at the criminal trial of a founder of the classified site Backpage.com heard opposite accounts in closing arguments of whether the founder knew there were prostitution ads on the site. Prosecutor Kevin Rapp says Michael Lacey was aware of the content of ads that had text and images indicative of prostitution.
FILE - Former Backpage.com owner Michael Lacey is shown on Capitol Hill in Washington, at a Senate committee on Jan. 10, 2017. On Friday, Oct. 27, 2023, lawyers made closing statements at Lacey’s trial in Phoenix, Ariz., on federal charges of facilitating prostitution and money laundering in what authorities say was a scheme to knowingly sell ads for sex on the classified site. Lacey, whose first trial on those charges ended in a mistrial, has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
In all, Lacey and the group of former employees have pleaded not guilty to charges of facilitating prostitution. Of the five, Lacey and two others have pleaded not guilty to money laundering charges. Backpage’s operators said they never allowed ads for sex, and assigned employees and automated tools to try to delete such ads. Their legal team maintains the content on the site was protected by the First Amendment. Prosecutors said the moderation efforts by the site were aimed at concealing the true nature of the ads.
Cambria raised questions about the credibility of testimony by Ferrer and the other Backpage employee who pleaded guilty, saying they want the government to recommend a more lenient sentence for their cooperation.
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