Charge won’t be pursued against Swift trespasser
Co-host Taylor Swift poses for a photo at the Grammy Nominations Concert Live! at Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2012, in Nashville, Tenn. AP
NASHVILLE, Tennessee — Prosecutors on Thursday declined to pursue a criminal trespassing charge against a man arrested earlier this month after allegedly climbing a fence at a Nashville home linked to country star Taylor Swift and claiming he was her boyfriend.
Jacob Kulke, of Wisconsin, will remain in jail in Nashville as he is fighting extradition to Colorado for probation violation. Kulke did not appear in court during his Thursday hearing. The 24-year-old Kulke was arrested Dec. 14 after climbing a fence and a gate at a home in Belle Meade that has been publicly linked to Swift.
The affidavit said Kulke claimed he was in contact with a person at the home through social media. He said he was dating her and it was her birthday and he wanted to surprise her. Swift was overseas at the time her spokeswoman has previously declined to comment on the case.
Sean McKinney, Kulke’s attorney, said Thursday that prosecutors discussed the decision not to prosecute with representatives for Swift. He said that Kulke is not guilty of the trespassing charge and said that his client was tricked by someone into believing that he was communicating with the star. Kulke told police he rode a bus to Nashville from Wisconsin, and then took a taxi to the home.
“It is the defense’s position that he was misled by someone else,” McKinney said. “Mr. Kulke had reasonable belief that he was invited on to the premises.”
McKinney said that prosecutors could still bring the charge back within the statutes of limitations, but no restrictions were placed on him by the prosecutors or Swift.
“He is still a big fan of Taylor Swift,” McKinney said.
Assistant District Attorney Tali Rosenblum said that Kulke has already spent 13 days in jail and the trespassing charge is a misdemeanor that carries a maximum 30-day sentence. She said they wanted to resolve the charge in Tennessee so that authorities could extradite him to Colorado.
“Mr. Kulke is looking for his 15 minutes of fame and he got all he deserved,” Rosenblum said.
