BARTOW — A team of lawyers and a flurry of defense motions were not enough to keep internet pornographer Christopher Wilson from having his bail revoked.

Wilson had been free on $151,000 bail since just days after his Oct. 7 arrest on 301 obscenity charges stemming from the pornographic Web site he ran from his Lakeland apartment.

However, the State Attorney’s Office last month filed a motion to revoke Wilson’s bail because he continued to operate the Web site and to post new pictures on it following his arrest.

Wilson appeared in court Friday neatly dressed in a purple shirt and tie, surrounded by family members and friends.

Weston, Garrou, DeWitt, and Walters, the law firm representing Wilson, filed motion after motion Friday in an attempt to keep their client out of jail.

Lawyers Lawrence Walters, Jerome Mooney and Derek Brett appeared in court to present their case Friday, along with Bartow lawyer Richard Mars.

First, they filed a motion to disqualify Judge J. Dale Durrance from presiding over the case, claiming that Durrance suffers from extreme visual impairment.

“Defendant Wilson believes that he cannot obtain a fair hearing and/or trial before Judge Durrance as a result of the Judge’s visual impairment, which Defendant Wilson fears will prevent Judge Durrance from fully and fairly evaluating the allegedly obscene materials in according with the appropriate legal standards,” the motion said.

Judge Durrance denied that motion.

They also renewed a previous motion they had filed, asking to reschedule the bail revocation hearing to a later date. Durrance denied that motion as well.

Polk County Sheriff’s Detective Charlie Gates then testified about his investigation into Wilson’s Web site. Gates said he bought a membership to the site and downloaded pictures and videos from that Web site.

Lawyer Mooney asked Gates whether he obtained any type of warrant for the 30 pictures and 3 videos he downloaded. Gates said he did not.

Mooney asked that Durrance rule that the pictures and video could not be admitted into evidence.

Durrance refused.

“They’ll be marked and admitted,” he said.

Gates testified that, for his investigations, he used a covert credit card and a fictitious name, and he purchased a membership to Wilson’s site that gave him access to the areas of the Web site that featured the allegedly obscene activity.

With a membership, he said, “You could view certain forums that normal people couldn’t view, or submit pictures.”

“Are you aware of anyone else in Polk County, besides you, that is a member of this site?” Mooney demanded.

Gates hesitated a moment before replying, “Not that I know of.”

Wilson’s lawyers have argued that Polk County does not have jurisdiction over Wilson’s Web site. Gates acknowledged that the server to Wilson’s Web site is hosted in a city near Amsterdam, in the Netherlands.

“That’s not in Polk County, is it?” Mooney asked.

“Not as of today,” Gates said.

Mooney also argued that because Wilson moved to Orlando after he was released on bail, he was not violating Polk County law by running his Web site while living in another county.

And after Wilson’s arrest, no one from the Sheriff’s Office told Wilson to stop running his Web site or to stop posting any materials on the Web site, Mooney said.

Assistant State Attorney Brad Copley presented Durrance with the pictures and video clips that the state claims are obscene and proof of Wilson’s violation of bail.

The video clips were played on a laptop computer, which Gates swiveled to face Durrance so he could watch them. A soundtrack of sexual activity filled the courtroom air as each video clip was played.

Wilson stared straight ahead, expressionless.

After Durrance reviewed the clips and thumbed through 30 pictures, Mooney asked that Randy Fisher, an associate professor from the University of Central Florida’s Department of Psychology, be allowed to testify.

“He will testify that these materials do not appeal to a prurient interest, they appeal to a normal, healthy sexual interest,” Mooney said.

“We don’t need experts to tell us what we see with our own eyes,” Copley said.

Durrance refused to let Fisher testify.

He then ruled that there was probable cause to think the pictures were obscene, and he ordered Wilson be held without bail until his trial. A trial date has not been set yet.

“Will your honor consider a stay of execution?” lawyer Brett asked.

“Did you hear the court’s last words?” Durrance snapped. “I’d appreciate it if you’d honor them.”

When Mooney attempted to speak, a visibly angry Durrance repeated, “Did you hear the court’s last words? I’d appreciate it if you’d honor them,” and then left the courtroom.

Outside the courtroom, one of Wilson’s lawyers, Lawrence Walters, said his firm thinks Durrance made a number of errors in revoking the bail, including sending Wilson back to jail for material that has not yet been determined legally to be obscene.

He said that his office would work on filing an appeal immediately.

“This is clearly an emergency matter, and not just for Mr. Wilson,” he said. “This affects the right of each and every resident of Polk County and Florida to engage in constitutionally protected speech.”

Wilson’s next scheduled court date is a pre-trial conference set for Feb. 7, 2006. A trial date could be set then.