John Edwards’ former mistress can pursue criminal contempt charges against former Edwards aide Andrew Young, his wife, and attorneys, a North Carolina judge has ruled.
Rielle Hunter, who has a daughter with the former Democratic presidential candidate, contends the Youngs and their attorneys violated a court order by passing to federal prosecutors information that had been sealed by the Orange County, N.C., Superior Court,
The News & Observer reported.
Judge Mike Morgan said Monday he was not ruling on the overall issue, but he said Hunter’s lawyers had presented enough evidence to warrant a further hearing.
The tabloid broke the story that she was having an affair with Edwards — and that they had a child — while his wife, Elizabeth, was struggling with terminal cancer. Elizabeth Edwards eventually filed for divorce and died last December.
Edwards has been indicted on federal charges alleging that he broke campaign finance laws by using contributions from two wealthy donors to hide his affair. The former senator denies the charges.
Andrew Young is expected to be a key prosecution witness in his trial.
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