With Restraining Order Lifted, “DC Madam” Predicts 20 to 100 More Names

On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler lifted the temporary restraining order which prohibited Deborah Jeane Palfrey (aka the “DC Madam”) from releasing 13 years of telephone records. The records include calls made during Palfrey’s time as the head of a Washington, D.C.-based escort service.

(See a .pdf of the memorandum order here.)

But does this mean that we’ll learn of more prominent Washingtonians who frequented Palfrey’s service? Yeas & Nays chatted with Palfrey Thursday afternoon, following Kessler’s order.

“We’ve gone through hell and back trying to get these records released,” Palfrey said. “I am now free to distribute the records and I have every intention of doing just that.”

You’ll recall that Palfrey did turn many records over to ABC News earlier this year, but ABC News Chief Investigative Correspondent Brian Ross stated on the much-hyped “20/20” special that

the phone records “turned out not to be as newsworthy as we thought in terms of the names.”

But Palfrey disagreed with Ross’s contention, telling us that “there were and are noteworthy names to be named, in the four years.” She also adds that ABC News only received 80 percent of the telephone records from 2002 to 2006.

As for what will come out of the phone records Palfrey can now distribute, she told Yeas & Nays, “it’s almost a certainty — or a high probability — that between 20 and another 100 names will be gotten to eventually.” She added that sorting through the records won’t be an easy task and that it will take “a small army” of reporters, bloggers and other interested parties to unearth the relevant names.

Palfrey recently distributed an email stating that, “in the tradition of responsible escort service owners, I always promised my clients (and independent contractors) that I would keep their confidence.” But, “it has been brought to my attention that statistically there are about a few dozen to a hundred or so former clients — who through their patronage of my business — either violated the public’s trust similar to former Ambassador Randall Tobias OR placed the public in danger, i.e. put themselves in positions susceptible to blackmail. Consequently based upon such deduction and significant reflection, I have determined that responsible dissemination of the phone records indeed is my patriotic duty.”

Palfrey even told us that she sees parallels between her case and Wednesday’s July 4th celebration.

“When you see the fireworks and all the people with tears in their eyes, that’s what this case is all about,” Palfrey said. “That’s what we’re fighting for.”