LEWISTON — Alexis Wright, a key defendant in the Kennebunk prostitution case, and the father of her 7-year-old son agreed in Family Court on Thursday that the boy will live with his father.
Dana Prescott, the attorney for Benjamin Hopkins, said the couple agreed that the child will live with Hopkins until the criminal case against Wright is resolved.
Wright, 29, of Wells, is accused of running a prostitution operation from her Zumba studio in Kennebunk. She has pleaded not guilty to 106 counts, including promotion of prostitution, engaging in prostitution, invasion of privacy, conspiracy, tax offenses and receiving welfare benefits when ineligible.
She is scheduled for trial in May.
The case has drawn international attention in part because Wright is suspected of keeping a list of more than 150 names of clients, including some prominent figures.
So far, 64 men have been charged with the misdemeanor of engaging a prostitute in the case. Eight have pleaded guilty.
In court documents filed in Family Court in October, Prescott argued that the child should live with Hopkins because of the publicity the case has generated.
As part of that, the child will attend school in a new school system, Prescott said.
“He’ll have lots of contact with his mother,” Prescott said. “He is very familiar with both parents.”
Prescott said that both parents were cooperative in coming to the agreement, and that he worked closely with Wright’s attorney, Sarah Churchill.
Prescott said Hopkins and Wright have done an excellent job as parents to work together and put their child before their own interests.
“There are a lot of parents who wouldn’t have done the right thing,” Prescott said.
Thursday’s hearing before Family Court Magistrate Paul Mathews was closed to the public, and the file has been sealed.
Staff Writer Scott Dolan can be contacted at 791-6304 or at:
sdolan@mainetoday.com
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