John Edwards's Ex-Staffer, Andrew Young, in Contempt of Court Over Sex Tape

A North Carolina judge found former John Edwards campaign staffer Andrew Young in contempt of court Friday for failing to turn over a sex tape featuring the onetime presidential candidate and his mistress, Rielle Hunter.

North Carolina Superior Court Judge Abraham Jones ruled that Young has until Wednesday at 2 p.m. to turn over the tape, according to the Raleigh, N.C., News and Observer. If Young surrenders the tape, there will be a hearing to determine whether he and his wife Cheri have complied with the order, Jones said at the hearing at the Chatham County Courthouse in Hillsborough, N.C.

After the hearing Friday, the Youngs said they never had any intention of distributing the tape or showing it publicly, according to the News and Observer. They said they have no problem with turning the materials over to the court to be sealed until the civil case over possession is resolved. The tape is currently in a safety deposit box in Atlanta.

Judge Rejects Argument

Earlier, attorneys for Young argued that because the tape is in Atlanta, not Orange County, N.C., it was not subject to a temporary restraining order won by Hunter seeking its return. The judge rejected this argument.

On Jan. 28, Hunter, 45, was granted a temporary restraining order for the video. But when Orange County sheriff's deputies arrived at Young's Chapel Hill residence to take the tape, Young consulted with his attorney and refused to turn it over, according to documents obtained by People Magazine.

Meanwhile Hunter's sister, Roxanne Marshall, tells Inside Edition in an interview airing Friday that her sister still loves Edwards, with whom she has a 23-month-old daughter, Frances Quinn.

"She still believes they will be together," says Marshall, who added that her sister is relieved that Edwards has admitted publicly that he is Quinn's father. "She is very happy," Marshall says. "What mother wouldn't be, especially after his denying it ... My sister is a wonderful mother. Now she is busy enjoying Quinn, going to the park and to 'Mommy and Me' like classes."

John Edwards's Ex-Aide:Sex Tape is Somewhere 'Safe'

Andrew Young, the ex-aide to embattled two-time former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards, says he has an alleged sex tape depicting the former senator and his then-mistress Rielle Hunter – and that the tape is in a safe-deposit box.

"We were offered millions for that stupid tape," he said in a recent interview. He says he and his wife Cheri found the tape in "a box of trash filled with crinkled paper and tapes" left behind by Hunter. He says they never considered selling it: "We couldn't live with ourselves."

Young, 43, served as an aide to Edwards for more than nine years. Just before the 2008 presidential primaries began, he agreed – at Edwards' behest, he says – to publicly claim paternity for the baby being carried by Hunter, 45. Young details the deception in his new tell-all book, The Politician, out today.

On January 21st, Edwards – who told Peiople Magazine on January 27th that he still "deeply cares" about Elizabeth – admitted that he is the father of Hunter's 2-year-old daughter, Frances Quinn.

We Just Fell on the Floor

Young says that when he and Cheri first watched the sex tape – which was marked "special" – "we just fell on the floor. We were agape." Adds Cheri: "It was disappointing to see the person you had such hopes and dreams for be so careless."

Now Hunter is fighting back. On January 28th, she filed a motion against Young in a North Carolina court. It seeks the return of photos and videos, including one she says she made in 2006 while working for Edwards.

"In or about September 2006, using my video camera, I authored a personal video recording that depicted matters of a very private and personal nature," Hunter wrote in an affidavit filed Thursday. "In 2006, I was also having an intimate relationship with Edwards."

Also in the affidavit, Hunter says the tape was in a "hat box" in her rental home and that it was taken without her consent to "generate publicity."

Another point of confusion: Young said in The Politician that the naked woman depicted in the video was pregnant. Hunter had Quinn in 2008, more than a year after she says her "private" video was made.

Young says he cannot comment on the "ongoing litigation" in regard to Hunter. A court date was set for Monday, the same day Young is scheduled to give his first live television interview.

"We may lose the battle only because we don't have the money or power that John and Elizabeth do," says Young. "We also don't have friends in the judicial system like they do. But we do know the truth and we have the determination to get it out."

For more of the Edwards drama, pick up the latest issue of People Magazine.