After Hours Video owner Rick Krial's attorney Tate Love last week filed a motion with the Staunton Circuit Court to allow the addition of Buffalo, N.Y.-based Cambria to the defense team.
"The Commonwealth has reason to believe that the legal fee of the aforesaid Buffalo, N.Y., attorney is being paid by a third party and not by the defendant," Robertson wrote.
Robertson said that if Cambria and his associates are being supported by the adult industry, based on past case law, Krial will have an argument for appeal if convicted.
Robertson also claimed that any plea agreements favorable to Krial would conflict with the interests of a third party from the porn industry, and noted the presence of outside attorneys "allows them to exert strong pressures against the independent judgment of defense attorney Tate Love."
John Pauly, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania-based Adult Freedom Foundation, has disagreed with Robertson's contentions. "He's totally mistaken, because Cambria is 100 percent aboveboard."
Pauly described Cambria as a "bull" in the courtroom.
"He's a giant killer," Pauly said. "The city can expect the fight of their life."
Robertson, a longtime prosecutor in Staunton, has been an opponent of adult material dating back to the 1970s. He has said that he will not "allow dissemination of pornographic material in Staunton" and has threatened arrests, confiscation of inventory and prosecution for anyone selling obscene materials under a Virginia state obscenity statute.
A hearing to determine the question of conflict of interest is scheduled for Nov. 20.
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