Judge cannot ban Mosley website sex scenes

A French judge said it was not within his jurisdiction to ban an internet video of motor racing chief Max Mosley with prostitutes, but ordered the French recall of newspapers containing photos of the scene.

Judge Joel Boyer said he could not ban access to the website of the 'News of the World', which had carried a video with images of the scene, because the site was Britain-based and owned.

Mr Mosley’s lawyer, Philippe Ouakrat, had requested the site be restricted in France because the FIA, the governing body for motor sports that Mr Mosley heads, was based in Paris.

“The mere fact that this site is accessible from France – like all others on the web – is not enough to justify French jurisdiction,” Judge Boyer wrote.

However, the judge said French law did cover copies of the newspaper printed in France and ordered issues containing photos of the scene that are still available in the country to be recalled.

He ordered a penalty of €1,500 per infraction be applied if the recall is not respected.

In his ruling, Judge Boyer wrote the scenes were clearly “sadomasochistic stagings of sexual fantasies” that merited protection under privacy laws.

“Sexual practices between consenting adults are among the most intimate aspects of private life, with its element of shadow and mystery that no one should be forced to explain to a third party,” the judge wrote.

The News of the World reported earlier this month that Mr Mosley engaged in sex acts with five prostitutes that involved Nazi role-playing.

A video posted on the newspaper’s website showed a man identified as Mr Mosley arriving at an apartment and then engaging in various sex acts with several women, at least one in a prisoner’s uniform, while also speaking German.

Mr Mosley admits to visiting the prostitutes, but denies there were Nazi overtones to the encounter.

The allegations are particularly sensitive because Mosley is the son of the late Oswald Mosley, leader of Britain’s fascist movement before the Second World War and a friend of Adolf Hitler.

Mr Mosley is suing the News of the World’s parent company for breach of privacy.

The case is due to be heard later this year.