Former Florida Republican party chairman Christian Ziegler and his wife Bridget have filed a lawsuit to block the release of records that were gathered by officials during a rape investigation.
The couple is suing the City of Sarasota and the State Attorney's Office to prevent the documents from being released to the public, stating that the Sarasota Police Department obtained information while executing search warrants that they deemed irrelevant to the case. Said documents include text messages between Bridget and Christian, Christian's web history and more.
The lawsuit stated that "the only documents and data obtained from the cell phone that are public records are those documents that were reviewed and used in connection with the investigation, e.g., communications between Christian Ziegler and the accuser. Communications between Christian Ziegler and anyone else are not public records.
In February, police revealed the woman who accused Christian of rape told police he had been “sexually battering her for years” and “never felt like she could say no to him,” according to the records. The 22-page document also included new details that the former Florida GOP heavyweight kept a list containing the names of several other women on his phone, including his accuser- titled “THE LIST” with a subheading labeled a graphic expletive.
Bridget, a founder of the conservative group Moms for Liberty who pushes traditional values as a Sarasota school board member, was also caught in the middle of the controversy. During the investigation into claims Christian sexually assaulted the woman at her home in October 2023, Bridget revealed to police she and her husband had a threesome with the woman about a year earlier. Christian told police it was twice.
On March 6, the state attorney's office announced that it would not file any charges against Christian after police recommended a charge of video voyeurism. Police said the investigation found video evidence that a sexual encounter happened between the victim and Christian Ziegler. He recorded the encounter on his cell phone, but police said the sexual encounter was "likely consensual."
