Attorneys for John Does in high end Boston-area brothel case argue to keep names private

BOSTON — At the state’s highest court in Boston, attorneys for 18 Boston-area John Does identified in the black books of a sophisticated interstate high end brothel operation are desperately trying to keep their identities private.

Two brothel operators are preparing to plead guilty in federal court.

But state officials are looking to prosecute more than a dozen Boston-area customers who allegedly paid hundreds of dollars for sex at the brothels in Cambridge and Watertown.

Last year, acting Boston US Attorney Josh Levy said the clientele of the brothels included, politicians, big pharma executives, government contractors with security clearances, professors, lawyers, accountants, and scientists.

The media wants access to the names of the Johns, and at the SJC, a lawyer argued that typically closed show-cause hearings, should be open to the public in this case.

“What the public perception will be, if these hearings are closed, or if these applications don’t allow for the proper reporting of these hearings, is that anybody who is not charged will have done so or will not have been charged because they got some kind of preferential treatment, behind closed doors. At the hearing. And that is a significant concern,” attorney Jeffrey Pyle told the SJC.

But lawyers for more than a dozen Boston area John Does are arguing that revealing their names violates their privacy.

And that many of the Johns are not public figures at all.

“Given the salacious nature of the allegations in the case and given the widespread media coverage, in this day and age when everyone has that information at their fingertips, pretty much 24 hours a day, undoubtedly, the media is going to lead to people losing their jobs and livelihoods which is a liberty interest,” attorney Benjamin Urbelis argued.

It could be weeks before the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court issues a ruling.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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