Lawyers for John Edwards' Former Aide Hand Over Sex Tape

Feb. 10, 2010— -- Lawyers for a former John Edwards aide handed over to a North Carolina court today a purported sex tape allegedly made by the one-time presidential candidate and his mistress.

The ex-aide, Andrew Young, retrieved the alleged sex tape from a safe deposit box at a First Citizens Bank in Atlanta on Tuesday, accompanied by a private security guard appointed by the court.

Young gave a videotape labeled "special" (the sex tape) and a DVD called "hmm files copy 2," plus a log of the safe deposit box's activity, to the guard, who delivered the items to the court to be put under seal. According to the guard who testified today, the log showed the box was last opened in December 2008.

Young's attorney also turned over a copy of the sex tape from the Youngs' home along with additional items, including a CD of photos.

The handover came after a week of legal battles.

North Carolina Judge Abraham Penn Jones ordered that a security officer accompany Young to retrieve the tape and remove personal photographs from the Youngs' computer. In response, the Youngs filed an appeal against the order Monday, claiming it amounted to unreasonable search and seizure.

The Court of Appeals issued a stay in the case Tuesday, but the ruling came down after Young had already turned over the tape to the security guard.

Rielle Hunter, 42, was granted a temporary restraining order last month to prevent Andrew and Cheri Young from distributing a "personal videotape," which she contends is her property.

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The Youngs were declared in contempt of court Feb. 5, for not turning over the tape and photos being sought by Hunter. Jones said there would be penalties if the tapes weren't given to the court by today's deadline.

The Youngs claim that all the material covered by the temporary restraining order may be needed by federal prosecutors investigating whether campaign funds were improperly used by Edwards or his staff. A copy of the tape has been given to the FBI in Washington, D.C., as part of a grand jury investigation into Edwards' campaign finances.