Judge Issues Gag Order to Attorneys in Luster Date-Rape Trial

Citing concerns about locating neutral jurors, a judge Thursday issued a gag order in the trial of millionaire date-rape suspect Andrew Luster, barring attorneys in the case from commenting outside the courtroom about the proceedings.

“You can imagine the nightmare it will be trying to select a jury,” said Superior Court Judge Ken Riley in explaining his ruling. “I want this case tried in the courtroom.”

Riley set a July 15 trial date for 38-year-old Luster, the great-grandson of cosmetics mogul Max Factor, and said he would issue a ruling today on one of two motions filed by Luster’s attorneys seeking to enter into evidence additional items they say will exonerate their client.

Luster, a Mussel Shoals resident, is accused of sexually assaulting three women after allegedly rendering them unconscious with a date rape drug known as gamma hydroxybutrate, or GHB. He was arrested in July 2000 after one of the women reported being raped.

Riley’s ruling came a week after prosecutors requested the gag order, saying that previous out-of-court statements by Luster’s attorneys could taint the jury pool.

Defense attorneys have accused police and prosecutors of withholding evidence and of not properly investigating the claims of the alleged victims before filing charges. Deputy Dist. Atty. Anthony Wold has denied the allegations.

Roger Jon Diamond, an attorney representing Luster, told Riley that prosecutors were the first ones to speak to the media about the case “and we simply responded.”

“The day Mr. Luster was arrested prosecutors issued a press release and they have been continuing to contaminate the jury pool,” Diamond said. “They are pursuing an innocent man here.”