(EXCLUSIVE) Justin Bieber Fears Depo Video May Leak to Media
theJasmineBRAND.com exclusively reports, Justin Bieber has headed to court in the legal battle with a Florida photographer – who slapped the singer and his bodyguard with a lawsuit over an incident which ended with the paparazzi’s camera was damaged and he was allegedly assaulted – and is pleading with the judge to order the videotape of his upcoming deposition NOT be leaked to the press. Photographer Manuel Munoz filed suit against Bieber and his bodyguard, Dwayne Patterson back in 2014.
Here’s the latest: Bieber headed to court pleading with the Miami judge to seal the videotape copy of his deposition. He says he has a right to privacy and a right to a fair trial. Bieber says the photographer should not be allowed to ask him about the 17 other unrelated incidents involving other paparazzi who have accused Bieber or his entourage of damaging their items or assaulting them while trying to take photos of the superstar.
Further, he says he wants a court order prohibiting the plaintiff from releasing the videotape of his deposition to the media. The singer explains that the photographer’s lawyer has repeatedly disseminated factually untrue and prejudicial statements to the media during the course of the case, which makes him fear the deposition video will be sent to media outlets too.
The singer has been burned before in another legal battle where he saw his deposition leaked to the press and he was mocked endlessly for his attitude and answers he gave during that depo.
Bieber is pleading with the judge to prohibit the photographer from questioning him about the 17 other incidents along with ordering his videotaped depo to remain with the court and not sent out to media outlets.
Here’s the backstory: The man claimed he was taking pictures of Justin as he was leaving SET Nightclub in Miami Beach, minutes before he was busted for DUI. He said the bodyguard became upset that he was snapping away and chased him into a nearby Subway restaurant. The bodyguard then allegedly locked the restaurant door and cornered him in the bathroom & demanded he delete the images.
Munoz said that Bieber’s security then tried to forcibly remove the memory card along with kicking and punching him. Following the incident, the photographer said his camera was damaged in the shuffle and the memory card was taken by the bodyguard.
The man filed a police report stating he was tripped by the security guard and sustained a small scratch in his left knee, but failed to mention being kicked or punched.
He filed suit demanding damages for the incident and blamed the bodyguard and Bieber for what went down. Bieber’s attorney responded to the suit saying it was nothing more than a shakedown for money.
The suit is currently pending with both parties participating in the discovery phase of the case, exchanging documents and taking depositions. The singer is set to be deposed soon by the photographer’s legal team.
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