Extreme Associates’ Black, Borden Get 1-Year Sentences

PITTSBURGH — Extreme Associates partners Rob Black and Lizzy Borden will each spend a year and a day in prison as part of their guilty pleas on obscenity charges.

Black, whose real name is Robert Zicari, and his wife, Borden, whose birth name is Janet Romano, also received two years of supervised release at sentencing Wednesday.

They pleaded guilty in March to one count of conspiracy to distribute DVDs purchased by an undercover U.S. postal inspector in Pittsburgh.

The court formally dismissed nine other counts Wednesday at the 55-minute hearing in front of U.S. Judge Gary L. Lancaster.

Defense attorneys contested the government's claim that the material is "sadistic or masochistic" for sentencing purposes but that argument was denied.

Attorney Jennifer M. Kinsley, who represented the pair, submitted a brief to the court earlier this week that asked the court to sentence them “to probation or, at most, a short period of house arrest.”

Kinsley, in her brief, said that the pair had already paid a steep price with the indictment and six years worth of legal anxiety.

“What was once a thriving film production company grossing over $1 million in annual sales is now defunct and deeply in debt. [Black], a former award-winning director and president of his own company, is similarly bankrupt and unemployed. [Borden] earns meager booking fees for dance performances and other entertainment," the brief said.

“They are both reliant on the financial assistance of [Black]’s family to subsist. As a result of the deep decline in customer base and industry support this case spawned, [Black] and [Borden] have lost their house to foreclosure and have seen their livelihoods and careers slip away.

“When Extreme Associates, [Black], and [Borden] became the first mainstream adult producers to face federal obscenity prosecution in decades, their once-adoring fans were afraid to purchase the films and wholesalers and distributors were scared to do business with them, lest they too be charged with a crime.”

The case has been waged for much of the decade and began when an undercover U.S. Postal Service inspector bought porn videos through Extreme Associates' membership site, ExtremeAssociates.com, in 2002.

A federal grand jury indicted the couple in August 2003 on 10 counts of conspiracy to defraud the U.S., mailing obscene or crime-inducing matters and transporting obscene matter for sale.

A federal judge dismissed the case in January 2005, ruling that the anti-obscenity statutes were unconstitutional when applied to Extreme Associates because they violated an individual’s right to privacy. But the Justice Department appealed that ruling before the 3rd Circuit, which overruled the judge.

The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear Extreme’s appeal from the 3rd Circuit, sending the case back for trial. Upon learning of the Supreme Court’s refusal to hear the case, Zicari said it was “a big fuck you.”

Industry attorney and Free Speech Coalition Board Chair Jeffrey Douglas called Wednesday's sentencings “disappointing.”

“This is really tragic and utterly pointless,” Douglas told XBIZ. “The sentences don’t serve any ‘penalogical’ deterrence. The sentences are disproportionate [to the conspiracy charges] and offer no rehabilitative purpose.”

Related:  

Copyright © 2024 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

Pineapple Support Appoints Kasey Kei as Brand Ambassador

Pineapple Support has appointed veteran performer and content creator Kasey Kei as its latest brand ambassador.

Nebraska AV Bill Moves Forward Despite Privacy, Free Speech Concerns

Nebraska’s unicameral Legislature has given first-round approval to LB 1092, the state’s version of the age verification bills being sponsored around the country by anti-porn religious conservative activists.

Eva Maxim, Katrina Colt Headline 'Cumming to LA' From Cherry Kiss

Eva Maxim and Katrina Colt star with Vince Karter in 2021 XBIZ Europas Female Performer of the Year Cherry Kiss' "Cumming to L.A.," from Evil Angel.

AEBN Celebrates 25th Anniversary

The Adult Entertainment Broadcast Network (AEBN) is celebrating its 25th year in business this week.

Performers in Meta Blacklisting Lawsuit Seek to Preserve Antitrust Claims

Adult Performance Artists Guild board officers Alana Evans, Kelly Pierce and Ruby have informed a California court that, although they want to drop their lawsuit claiming that Meta conspired with OnlyFans to blacklist rival premium fan platforms’ talent, they may still pursue antitrust claims in the future.

Skylar Snow Headlines 'Infidelity 4' From Sweet Sinner

Skylar Snow toplines "Infidelity 4," the latest release from Mile High Media studio brand Sweet Sinner.

Serenity Cox Stars in 'Enjoy It' From MILFY

Serenity Cox stars with Alberto Blanco in "Enjoy It," from Vixen Media Group studio imprint MILFY.

Melissa Stratton Stars in Finale of Wicked's 'So Extra'

Melissa Stratton and Robby Apples star in the final scene from Wicked Pictures' "So Extra."

BiPhoria Drops Jim Powers' 'Saying GoodBi'

BiPhoria has released director Jim Powers' "Saying GoodBi."

FSC, Co-Plaintiffs to Ask US Supreme Court to Review Constitutionality of Texas Age Verification Law

Free Speech Coalition (FSC) and its co-plaintiffs in the challenge to Texas’ controversial age verification law have petitioned the United States Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit to stay its recent decision upholding the law, because they intend to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court to review the law’s constitutionality.

Show More