More Legal Trouble for Crew Rapper : Trademark: Judge asks Lucasfilm to file contempt proceedings against Luther Campbell over use of Skywalker logo.

A Los Angeles federal judge has sent a letter to film director George Lucas’ attorneys, asking Lucasfilm Ltd. to file a contempt proceeding against Luther Campbell, leader of the controversial rap group 2 Live Crew.q

In the letter, U.S. District Court Judge James Ideman charged that Campbell may have violated the judge’s May 9 order barring the rapper from using the name Luke Skywalker, a licensed trademark owned by Lucas.

Bertram Fields, a Lucasfilm attorney, said Monday that his firm received the letter last Friday, but hadn’t planned to make it public until Lucasfilm filed the lawsuit this week. However, copies were obtained Monday by some news organizations, including The Times.

In the letter, Ideman said he recently saw footage on a cable news TV program of Campbell wearing a T-shirt imprinted with the same Skyywalker logo that the rapper had been barred from using in the May 9 ruling.

As a result, the judge said he felt it might be appropriate for Lucasfilm to file a contempt proceeding.

Fields said Monday that Lucasfilm had been in the process of securing evidence to file a motion for a contempt citation even before receiving the judge’s advisory. He said Lucasfilm plans to petition the judge today or later this week to issue the citation.

The application to be filed by Lucasfilm Ltd., will, Fields said, allege that Campbell not only sold records bearing the Skyywalker logo after he was ordered to stop, but that he and other 2 Live Crew members continued to perform in T-shirts and jackets imprinted with the name.

“This was a fairly flagrant and public violation of the judge’s widely publicized order,” Fields said. “If people are allowed to disregard court orders, the judicial system will simply break down.”

On May 9, Ideman found that 2 Live Crew’s use of sexually explicit lyrics could “dilute the distinctive quality” of the Lucas trademark and ordered Campbell to stop using the Skywalker name pending the outcome of a lawsuit in the case.

The $300-million lawsuit filed by Lucasfilm in March claimed that Campbell, by using the name Luke Skyywalker, had engaged in unfair competition and infringement on Lucas’ licensed trademark. Luke Skywalker is the fictional hero of Lucas’ blockbuster “Star Wars” trilogy.

Campbell, on tour in Florida, could not be reached for comment, but Allen Jacobi, Luke Records’ attorney described as “shocking” the judge’s action in sending a letter to Lucasfilm.

“It sounds like the judge is becoming an advocate without having any knowledge as to what the negotiations between Lucasfilm and Luke Records,” Jacobi said. “He has inserted himself into the litigation.” He said he was considering asking Ideman to remove himself from the case.

In recent months, Campbell’s music has been at the center of a series of legal battles. On June 6, a federal judge in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., declared 2 Live Crew’s “As Nasty as They Wanna Be” album obscene. At least four arrests have already resulted from the Florida obscenity decision.

A Ft. Lauderdale record store owner was arrested on June 8 for selling a copy of the “Nasty” recording. Three members of 2 Live Crew--including Luther Campbell--were arrested following an adults-only performance by the group on June 9 in Hollywood, Fla.

The night Campbell was arrested, he was photographed wearing a T-shirt with the name “Luke Skyywalker” silk-screened across his chest. A video clip of Campbell in handcuffs with the Skyywalker name visible on his chest was broadcast on national television.