Playboy Snapchat Trial: Playmate Fights Against Jail Time
Feb. 24 2017, Published 11:20 p.m. ET
Destruction by Snapchat.
Playboy Playmate of the Year Dani Mathers is facing jail time for her naked Snapchat video and RadarOnline.com has exclusively learned that not only has she been banned from Hugh Hefner's storied Mansion, but her lawyer believes that the City Attorney is using her to "exploit this situation."
Mathers, 30, who was also Playboy's Miss May 2014, was caught sending a picture of a naked woman in the shower of her gym, LA Fitness, in the summer of 2016. She captioned the photo "If I can't unsee this then neither can you."
Followers instantly slammed her fat-shaming post and she quickly took it down. But after a lengthy investigation by police to locate the fellow gym member, the Los Angeles City Attorney, Mike Feurer decided to prosecute Mathers for "invasion of privacy," a misdemeanor crime that could have a six month jail time penalty were she found guilty.
Mathers faced severe backlash after the picture was posted, she lost her radio job and a source told RadarOnline.com exclusively that she was not welcome back at the Playboy Mansion.
But her attorney spoke out about the case for the first time with RadarOnline.com, defending his client and expressing his shock at the zeal with which the prosecutors were going after Mathers.
"She admitted she made a terrible mistake," legal eagle Tom Mesereau told RadarOnline.com.
"She immediately tried to stop it."
But Mesereau told RadarOnline.com that he believes the City Attorney "has political ambitions and the prosecutor wants to exploit this situation."
He criticized the City Attorney's office for the handling of the case. "The time and effort they have put into this is not trying to protect the alleged victim. They are not concerned for the victim at all."
Meserau also ripped the City Attorney's decision to go after his client. "I have never seen such a disingenuous prosecution in my entire life. They say this is an invasion of privacy but the prosecutor is doing more to promote public viewing of the photo than anybody else.
"The City Attorney is trying to exploit a case for political reasons."
Mesereau explained his own legal strategy with his Playboy Playmate client.
"I've never brought her to curt. I don't need to because this is a misdemeanor. They want to promote the case even if it hurts the alleged victim."
While the City Attorney was seeking jail time for Mathers, Mesereau asked for diversion, which would not require her to spend time behind bars and argued that he had valid evidence that the case should be decided in his honor.
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"One of the reasons they say they want to deny diversion is because she hasn't apologized, she has apologized from day one and said she made a mistake. She came right out and apologized before she even had an attorney!"
Mathers' next court date is February 28, 2017 but Mesereau told RadarOnline.com she will not be attending the hearing.
Stay with RadarOnline.com for updates to the story.
