Criminal charges have been dismissed against two attorneys and the former personal assistant of the chairman of Waffle House, who had been accused of trying to extort money from the executive.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Henry Newkirk made the verbal ruling Tuesday, staff attorney Allyn Parsons said. The details of the ruling were not available.
Mye Brindle and attorneys David Cohen and John Butters were indicted in June for allegedly attempting to extort money from Joe Rogers Jr. after his assistant secretly taped an intimate encounter with him, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution previously reported.
“The Honorable Court confirmed what we have asserted all along: Neither Mye Brindle nor her attorneys committed any crime,” said Cohen’s attorney, Brian Steel. “Ms. Brindle’s audio/video capturing her employer’s request for sexual favors in her workplace is legal. Further, sending a demand letter and making a demand in a mediation to resolve a civil suit do not constitute extortion. Judge Newkirk’s rulings squarely reflect the laws of this state.”
Brindle, Cohen and Butters had been charged with conspiracy to commit extortion, conspiracy to commit unlawful eavesdropping or surveillance, and unlawful eavesdropping or surveillance, The AJC reported. It’s a felony in Georgia to videotape the activities of another person in a private place without the consent of all parties involved.
