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Minneapolis (AP) ― Daunte Culpepper's move to clear himself of charges from a bawdy boat party appeared to get a boost Wednesday when a judge forced a prosecutor to explain why he charged black football players but not white men on the cruise.

The former Vikings quarterback and his old teammate Moe Williams both denied touching strippers during the party on Lake Minnetonka last fall. Culpepper testified that he and several others spent the hour-long cruise kneeling in a circle near the back of the boat betting $20 a throw in a craps game. Williams said a woman danced near him in the boat's hold but he never touched her.

But race was the central issue on Wednesday.

Culpepper and Williams are both black, as are the other two Vikings charged in connection with the boat party. Prosecutor Steve Tallen was forced to explain why he didn't charge two white men, including the captain of one of the boats, with similar lewd conduct when they allegedly kissed a stripper's exposed nipple.

Tallen denied repeatedly that race was a factor. He said the case against the two white men was shaky, and that a sheriff's deputy believed the only witness against the captain was not credible. He also pointed out that he can't bring felony charges -- one of the men allegedly paid the dancer, raising the possibility of a prostitution charge. The Hennepin County Attorney's Office, which would have pursued any felonies, declined to file any charges in the case.

"I'm allowed to make that decision, and it has nothing to do with the race of these defendants," Tallen said.

"It looks bad, though," Judge Kevin Burke responded.

"I am quite convinced that these two guys could have been charged," Burke said later in the hearing.

The judge said he thought the players had made a case that they were treated differently than the two white men who weren't charged. That left the question of what to do about it. No ruling was expected on Wednesday.

The race issue could be moot, anyway. Burke was also considering a request by the players' attorneys to throw out the charges because even if they did what the charges allege it wasn't a crime.

Culpepper and Williams both ignored reporter questions outside the courtroom. But on the witness stand, Culpepper described driving his childhood friend and employee Larry Tucker and a cousin because he didn't plan to drink.

Culpepper, dressed in a blue suit and tie, said they gathered on a patio near the rear of the boat and started playing craps. He said others playing included running back Mewelde Moore, safety Darren Sharper, and receiver Travis Taylor. Waitresses brought drinks, though Culpepper said he had only one drink that night. Lingerie-clad dancers offered dances.

"Nobody who was shooting dice wanted to get a dance," Culpepper said.

The misdemeanor charge against Culpepper accuses him of touching a dancer's buttocks.

Williams testified that a dancer approached him while he waited to go into a bathroom in the ship's hold. He said he let her, and stood there for perhaps a minute or two while she danced. But he said he never touched her breast as the charges allege, because he was holding a drink in one hand and a bag with his cell phone, wallet and $200 or $300 in dollar bills in the other hand.

He said he got the $1 bills at the request of a rookie player, who gave him larger bills to exchange at a bank on his way to the boat party. He said he couldn't remember the name of the teammate he exchanged the money for. When Tallen pressed him for a name, Williams said, "Come on, there weren't names on the back of their jerseys."

Investigators have said they had a tough time finding out who did what on the boats because people who attended the boat party generally have not cooperated.

Even as the players' testimony questioned the heart of Tallen's case, the general scene described was consistent with the one described by boat employees.

He said at least one employee seemed to be bothered by all the naked dancers in the boat's bar area, demonstrating how she poured drinks with her head down, shielding her eyes. Williams said he suggested to the woman that the lights be turned down so she didn't have to see what was going on.

Culpepper's attorney, Earl Gray, argued that even if the two players did get lap dances, it wasn't a crime because such dances happen all the time in Minneapolis. Gray and Williams attorney' Joe Friedberg, also said witnesses who said they saw their clients touching strippers never said the women were naked, as the complaints alleged.

The two other players charged in the case, cornerback Fred Smoot and tackle Bryant McKinnie, were not part of Wednesday's hearing. McKinnie and Smoot are accused of other alleged lewd acts. They've all pleaded not guilty. Trials for the four are set for April and May.

Culpepper was traded to Miami earlier this month for a second-round pick, days after he requested to be traded or released.

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According to the Lake Minnetonka Area Chamber of Commerce, Lake Minnetonka has 125 miles of shoreline and reaches depths of up to 113 feet.

(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)