Hairdresser-mistress who accused disgraced Missouri governor of taking racy photo to blackmail her now admits she might have DREAMED seeing him with a camera phone

  • Attorneys defending Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens against a felony invasion-of-privacy charge say his mistress-accuser isn't sure what happened
  • The woman, a hairdresser, claimed Greitens took a photo of her partially in the nude so he could blackmail her into silence about their affair
  • She was bound and blindfolded at the time
  • Now she testifies that she can't recall seeing him with a camera-phone, and doesn't know if her belief that he had the phone was the result of a dream
  • Police arrested the governor on the basis of a recorded conversation she had with her husband, where she said she saw a camera flash through the blindfold
  • She claims Greitens told her he had erased the picture, but the governor's defense team believes it never existed
  • Now they're demanding prosecutors turn over any other evidence that migh clear Greitens 

Attorneys defending Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens against a felony invasion-of-privacy charge have raised new doubts about a key allegation that he took a non-consensual photo of a partially nude woman with whom he had an affair.

In a court filing dated Sunday, Greitens' attorneys say the woman testified during a Friday deposition that she never saw Greitens with a camera or phone on the day he is accused of taking a partially nude photo of her while she was blindfolded and her hands bound.

The court filing says the woman also testified that she doesn't know if her belief that he had a phone was the result of a dream.

A Missouri judge has issued a gag order in the felony invasion of privacy trial off Republican Gov. Eric Greitens (center, with wife Sheena and their children) after his lawyers released a court document alleging that the victim in the case invented the entire episode based on a dream

Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (center, with wife Sheena and their children) is facing a felony invasion-of-privacy charge but his lawyers are raising doubts about the testimony of a woman with whom he had the affair that led to his arrest

Greitens' attorneys say his mistress, a hairdresser, testified she never saw him with a camera or phone on the day he is accused of taking a partially nude picture of her while she was blindfolded and bound

In a court filing dated Sunday, Greitens' attorneys say his mistress, a hairdresser, testified she never saw him with a camera or phone on the day he is accused of taking a partially nude picture of her while she was blindfolded and bound

The 43-year-old governor, a father of two and retired Navy SEAL, has admitted to the affair but has held on to his job while he fights the criminal charge; his paramour, according to the salacious court pleading, once sent him her own racy photos – suggesting they were in the habit of sexting

The 43-year-old governor, a father of two and retired Navy SEAL, has admitted to the affair but has held on to his job while he fights the criminal charge

A spokeswoman for St. Louis Circuit attorney Kim Gardner said Monday that Greitens' attorneys had 'cherry picked bits and pieces' of the woman's nine-hour deposition 'to attack her credibility.'

Greitens, Missouri's top elected official, was mugshotted b ythe St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department after his felony arrest in Februar

Greitens, Missouri's top elected official, was mugshotted b ythe St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department after his felony arrest in February

The filing is labeled as a motion to compel St. Louis city prosecutors to turn over any previously undisclosed testimony or evidence that may be beneficial to Greitens' criminal defense.

Gardner spokeswoman Susan Ryan called the motion 'frivolous' and said prosecutors have complied with all evidence-sharing rules.

The latest court filing comes as Greitens' defense team has been urging a special Missouri House committee to delay its own investigatory report - planned to be released this week - until after Greitens' trial in May.

Greitens acknowledged in January that he had an extramarital affair in 2015 as he was preparing to run for governor. That came as St. Louis television station KMOV aired a report in which the woman describes a March 21, 2015, encounter with Greitens during a conversation that her husband secretly recorded.

In that recorded conversation, the woman says Greitens invited her into the basement of his St. Louis home, where he tied her hands to some exercise rings, blindfolded her and partially undid her clothing. She said she saw a flash through the blindfold and Greitens said to her, 

Greitens claims 'reckless liberal prosecutor' Kim Gardner for charging him and points out that her campaign benefited form donations by uber-liberal investor George Soros

Greitens claims 'reckless liberal prosecutor' Kim Gardner for charging him and points out that her campaign benefited form donations by uber-liberal investor George Soros

'You're never going to mention my name, otherwise there will be pictures of me everywhere.' The woman said Greitens told her later in the day that he had erased the photo.

Greitens has denied blackmailing the woman but has not directly answered questions about whether he took a photo.

A St. Louis grand jury indicted Greitens in February for allegedly taking the photo and transmitting it in a way that it could be accessed by a computer.

Prosecutors previously acknowledged that they don't have the photo. But they could be trying to obtain it. If the photo were taken using a smartphone, it may have been automatically transmitted to cloud-based storage and the government could subpoena a technology company for access to it.

The court filing by Greitens' attorneys said the woman participated in a lengthy deposition Friday. After acknowledging she hadn't seen a camera or phone, she was asked if she saw what she believed to be a phone.

'I haven't talked about it because I don't know if it's because I'm remembering it through a dream or I - I'm not sure, but yes, I feel like I saw it after that happened,' she responded, according to the court filing.

 

Greitens says he has been railroaded by a prosecutor who wants to 'score political points'

Greitens says he has been railroaded by a prosecutor who wants to 'score political points'

Ryan said, 'There is nothing substantially new about the victim's testimony in the deposition.' She said Greitens' defense team is 'playing political games' and attempting 'to try this case in the media.'

The court filing says the woman also acknowledged that she sent partially nude images of herself to Greitens in June 2015 and had willingly continued to see him for months after the March 2015 encounter. Greitens' attorneys said that was an indication she didn't feel like her privacy had been violated.

A phone message for the woman's attorney was not immediately returned Monday.

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