Lawyers for 13 ‘John Doe’ people at center of Mass. sex ring push to keep court hearings private

BOSTON — Attorneys for 13 alleged “John Doe” clients at the center of a Massachusetts sex ring that authorities said catered to “wealthy and well-connected clientele” are pushing to keep court hearings private.

More than two dozen probable cause hearings that were to be public were initially scheduled for last week in the Cambridge District Court but were halted by the court.

Elected officials, doctors, lawyers, professors, accountants, and military officers were reportedly among a group of “high-end” clients who paid for the illegal sex services at various locations in Massachusetts and in Virginia.

In a motion filed Monday in the state Supreme Judicial Court, the attorneys argued that their clients “have been afforded no process whatsoever, let alone due process.”

The attorneys argued in the motion that the applications for criminal complaints were filed in the Cambridge District Court “on or about” Dec. 18, 2023 and that the Notices of Magistrate’s Hearings were sent out on Dec. 26, 2023.

“Many of the recipients did not receive the notice to them until the middle of January. None were even aware of the notice when the Clerk-Magistrate made her decision on December 21, 2023,” the motion states. “Given this, John Doe Nos. 1 through 13 are requesting full court review and oral argument. The accused are entitled to privacy at this early stage in the proceedings, and public hearings should remain the exception rather than the rule.”

The people identified as “John Doe” in the motion were given until 4 p.m. Monday to file their joint response to the petition.

In the motion filed Monday, several attorneys are listed: Howard Cooper of the Boston law firm Todd & Weld, representing “John Doe No. 13,” filed the motion electronically. Also listed are several other Boston attorneys: Attorney Janice Bassil, representing “John Doe No. 1;” Attorney Stephen Neyman, representing “John Doe No. 2-5″; Attorney Benjamin Urbelis, representing “John Doe No. 6-10;” Attorney Michael Callanan, representing “John Doe No. 11″; and Cambridge attorney David Grimaldi, representing “John Doe No. 12.”

“The Intervenor Petitioners respectfully request that this matter be presented to the full Court which, after full briefing and argument, should vacate the Clerk-Magistrate’s decision and put in place appropriate remedial and procedural safeguards applicable to the question of whether any of the show cause hearings at issue should be public,” the motion states.

The Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers also filed a memorandum of support for the attorneys representing the John Does is the case.

“This is a matter of intense public interest and could have potentially far reaching effects on the constitutional rights of any person subject to an application for criminal complaint in any District Court of Massachusetts,” the association wrote.

The association wrote that it “urges the Single Justice to refer this matter to the Full Bench of the SJC for briefing and argument, and then vacate the Clerk-Magistrate’s ruling opening all of the show cause hearings in this matter to the public, and remand the cases to the Clerk-Magistrate for individualized hearings, giving each subject of an application for a complaint an opportunity to be heard on whether their individual privacy interests outweigh any legitimate public interest in the show cause hearing.”

It was unclear Wednesday when, or if, the public court hearings would be re-scheduled.

No names on the client list will be released until probable cause has been found, officials have said.

Attorney discusses why the Boston sex ring client list remains a secret

Authorities in November arrested Han Lee, 41, of Cambridge; James Lee, 68, of California, and Junmyung Lee, 30, of Dedham, who are all accused of running a “sophisticated” commercial sex network in Watertown, Cambridge, and in Virginia, where buyers paid up to $600 per hour for a wide array of advertised sex acts.

“This commercial sex ring was built on secrecy and exclusivity catering to a wealthy and well-connected clientele,” Acting U.S. Attorney Josh Levy said in November.

Read the motion filed Monday below.

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

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