The internet is a lot like Pet Sematary: Things long-buried have a way of coming to life.

Take the nude photos allegedly of conservative federal judge Bill Pryor that appeared on badpuppy.com (NSFW) way back in 1997, when the Web was held together with string and tape. The site Legal Schnauzer claims the images, of a completely nude and erect model, are actually of Pryor, a Republican appointee who sit on the U.S. Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals for Georgia, Florida and Alabama.

Now we’re the last ones to shade someone for sharing what God gave them, but Pryor has a solid record of screwing the gay community (and not in the fun way). In addition to opposing reproductive rights and supporting prayer in school, Pryor, now 51, filed a brief in Lawrence v. Texas arguing that sodomy “is a chosen behavior unworthy of constitutional protection” and comparing homosexuality to pedophilia, incest and corpse-raping.

And there’s this gem:

Pryor revealed during his confirmation hearings that he and his wife, Kristan W. Pryor, rescheduled a family vacation to Disney World when they discovered the Orlando, Florida, theme park had scheduled “Gay Days” festivities at the same time as their planned visit.

According to the report, a series of more than a dozen photos were taken in the early 1980s, when Pryor was a college student at the University of Louisiana. They appeared in at least one print mag before landing online.

What makes Legal Schnauzer’s claims really of interest is the suggestion that the GOP overlords who backed Pryor’s judicial rise have been blackmailing him with these photos for years.

What is the public to make of revelations that Pryor once was featured on a gay porn Web site? It clearly raises questions about rank hypocrisy, dating to the beginnings of Pryor’s political career. It also raises the specter of Pryor being ethically compromised to the point that he is the victim of not-so-subtle blackmail, forced to participate in rulings that he knows are unlawful, at risk of his secrets being revealed. Most importantly, federal nominees typically are asked during the confirmation process about potentially embarrassing or compromising information in their backgrounds. If Pryor failed to disclose the gay-porn photographs, or did not answer a specific question truthfully under oath, it could be grounds for a Senate investigation. …Even though major political figures were aware of the photos, they did not prove to be a hurdle when President George W. Bush nominated Pryor to the federal bench in 2003 and installed him via a recess appointment in February 2004. The staunchly right-wing Pryor was perhaps the most controversial nominee of the Bush presidency. A bipartisan “Gang of 14” U.S. senators reached an agreement to allow an up-or-down vote on Pryor and two other nominees, and they were confirmed by a 53-45 margin on June 9, 2005. Why then was Pryor chosen, when many experts saw Sharon Lovelace Blackburn (now presiding judge in the Northern District of Alabama) as among numerous more qualified candidates? Our sources say high-level Republicans, likely including White House strategist Karl Rove, knew the gay-porn photos put Pryor in a weak position–and they would make him easy to control on the bench…

Legal Schnauzer reached out to Pryor, who had little comment:

I have nothing to say to you except that these accusations are totally false.

Do not contact me again.

Bill Pryor

When the site’s editor, Roger Shuler, commented that several sources had confirmed the model’s identity, Pryor got really steamed:

This is the last time I will respond to you. Those photos are not of me.

Do not contact me again.

Bill Pryor

Well, we hope Bill was able to at least make enough money with those photos to pay off his student loans. Those are a real mother.