from www.laweekly.com – One of the stranger twists to come out of the Washington, D.C. obscenity trial of John “Buttman” Stagliano and Evil Angel Productions Inc. was an allegation by porn star Aurora Snow, who covered the trial, that one Los Angeles police detective who regularly attended porn conventions undercover appeared to be a fan and even once asked Snow for an autograph.

The officer, Det. Michael Ozaki, was presented during the trial as a witness for federal prosecutors who had attended the Adult Entertainment Expo, the adult industry’s annual convention in Las Vegas, five times. Snow writes at the Adult Video News website:

[The detective] looked all too familiar to me. I heard the detective explain how he had to attend the AVN Expo for the last five years in a row “undercover” in order to research the new material being put out by adult companies. I was surprised to hear how the LAPD spends tax money so consistently on porn related materials in the name of “research” when the city is reeling from recent budget cuts. But mostly, as the LAPD detective answered questions under oath, I began to realize why I was recognizing him; I am almost sure that I have signed autographs for him at adult conventions. That is one dedicated undercover officer! I wonder if somewhere in a police evidence folder is a signed photo of me or if the detective kept that for his personal collection. I hope the latter.

The Bush-era obscenity case against the Van Nuys porn producers, by the way, was thrown out for “woefully insufficient” evidence, according to the judge. Another high-profile porn maker wasn’t so lucky when it came to the Bush II administration’s crusade against porn. Max Hardcore, a.k.a former UPI photojournalist Paul F. Little, was sent to federal prison.