Prosecutors will use transcripts of perverted Internet chats to try to get the son of former Liberal Party boss Ray Harding listed as a high-risk sex offender.
Russell Harding – whose dad was a key ally of former Mayor Rudy Giuliani – tried in vain to keep his sick fantasies about sex with children under wraps because they weren’t part of his kiddie-porn conviction.
But Manhattan federal Judge Lewis Kaplan ruled this week the dialogues could be used against him because they were never placed under seal.
Russell Harding, who moved to suburban Hartsdale after his recent release from prison, faces a hearing next month on his future as a registered sex offender.
Westchester prosecutors want him classified as “Level 3,” which would keep him registered for life, with his picture and home address posted on the Internet.
Harding, 44, served a 63-month sentence for downloading kiddie porn and stealing almost $400,000 from the city while serving in a patronage post as head of the Housing Development Corp.
He didn’t return a call for comment, but in a posting on his blog, rudyveritas.com, he accused the government of violating the rules of criminal procedure.