83-Steelers-43
03-06-2007, 11:41 AM
I know it's not Anna Nicole Smith, but it's kinda important....
Jury in I. Lewis 'Scooter' Libby Guilty on Four of Five Counts in CIA Leak Trial
Tuesday, March 06, 2007
WASHINGTON — Former White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby was found guilty Tuesday of four of five counts of perjury, lying to the FBI and obstructing an investigation into the leak of a CIA operative's identity.
Libby was found not guilty on count three, which was the subject of late questioning Monday by the 11 jurors. The jury reached a verdict on the 10th day of deliberations and just hours after they had received an answer to a three-part question about count three, which alleges that Libby lied to the FBI about a conversation with Time magazine reporter Matt Cooper.
Defense attorney Ted Wells said he was very disappointed in the verdict.
"Despite our disappointment in the jurors' verdict, we believe in the American justice system and we believe in the jury system. We intend to file a motion for a new trial and if that is denied, we will appeal the conviction, and we have every confidence that ultimately Mr. Libby will be vindicated," he said.
"We believe, as we said at the time of the indictment, that he is totally innocent, totally innocent and that he did not do anything wrong," Wells continued.
The guilty verdicts on four charges means Libby faces a combined penalty of up to 25 years in prison. Federal sentencing guidelines call for a shorter sentence. Walking out of the courtroom, Libby's face was expressionless. His wife's eyes were red and puffy after sobbing in the courtroom. He face was also flushed.
The jury was released shortly after noon. Judge Reggie Walton expressed his gratitude to the panel for its service.
"I would like to publicly thank you for all the time you have given to the case. We know it is an inconvenience. I can't say I have seen a better group of jurors ... (your work) epitomizes what our judicial system is supposed to be about," Walton said.
The 11-member jury was made up of seven females and four males. One female juror was dropped from the jury during the third day of deliberations after she claimed to have a conflict of interest. The 12th juror was not replaced by an alternate.
Libby was accused of perjury, obstruction of justice and lying to FBI agents and the grand jury about how he learned about Valerie Plame's identity and whom he told. Plame is the CIA employee whose husband, Amb. Joe Wilson, was sent to Niger by the agency to investigate claims that Iraq had tried to buy yellowcake uranium.
Wilson became a vocal critic of the Bush administration for using bad intelligence to justify the attack on Iraq. Libby and others, including President Bush aide Karl Rove, were implicated for trying to out Plame in retaliation for Wilson's criticism.
Jurors heard 19 witnesses during the five-week trial, but Libby was not called to the stand. Among the witnesses testifying were journalists Cooper, Tim Russert of NBC and Judy Miller of The New York Times. Miller spent 85 days in jail so as not to reveal her source. She testified for the prosecution, led by Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald.
Long after the investigation began, it was revealed that Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage, an administration member who opposed the war, was the first to leak Plame's name to the media. Armitage was never charged with violating the Intelligence Identities Protection Act, which punishes those who out secret agents.
In fact, the court never determined nor did it allow any evidence in Libby's trial about whether Plame was undercover or not and whether Libby violated the IIPA. Questions about Libby's motive were tested by the assertion that he had no reason to lie if Plame was represented to him as an analyst, he never knew she was undercover nor had reason to lie about his knowledge of her role in sending Wilson to Niger.
Democrats who have long been critics of the administration applauded the jury's decision.
"It's about time someone in the Bush administration has been held accountable for the campaign to manipulate intelligence and discredit war critics," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. "Lewis Libby has been convicted of perjury, but his trial revealed deeper truths about Vice President Cheney's role in this sordid affair. Now President Bush must pledge not to pardon Libby for his criminal conduct."
"The jury has spoken," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Plame and her husband have since left government and are in the process of developing a movie about the case with Warner Bros. and producer Jerry Zucker. Plame also has a $2 million book deal if the CIA ever permits her to publish her story.
After completing their ninth day of deliberations without a verdict Monday, jurors passed U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton three questions. All related to what Libby told the FBI regarding his 2003 telephone conversation with Cooper about Plame.
Cooper says Libby confirmed that Plame worked at the CIA. Libby told FBI agents that he only told Cooper he'd heard about Plame from other reporters but didn't know for sure whether she worked at the CIA.
In their questions, which were released Tuesday morning, jurors seemed confused about what Fitzgerald was alleging.
Were prosecutors saying Libby knew that Plame worked for the CIA by the time of his FBI interview, jurors asked, or does the government believe Libby's account of the Cooper conversation was untrue?
"To be clear, Mr. Libby is charged in count three with making a false statement to the FBI about what was said during his July 12, 2003, conversation with Mr. Cooper. Mr. Libby is not charged with making a false statement to Mr. Cooper. ... To be clear, count three does not allege, nor does the prosecution contend, that Mr. Libby told the FBI that, at the time of his FBI interviews, he did not know that Mr. Wilson's wife worked for the CIA," Walton responded to one of the jury questions.
FOX News' Jim Angle and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,256965,00.html
Jury in I. Lewis 'Scooter' Libby Guilty on Four of Five Counts in CIA Leak Trial
Tuesday, March 06, 2007
WASHINGTON — Former White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby was found guilty Tuesday of four of five counts of perjury, lying to the FBI and obstructing an investigation into the leak of a CIA operative's identity.
Libby was found not guilty on count three, which was the subject of late questioning Monday by the 11 jurors. The jury reached a verdict on the 10th day of deliberations and just hours after they had received an answer to a three-part question about count three, which alleges that Libby lied to the FBI about a conversation with Time magazine reporter Matt Cooper.
Defense attorney Ted Wells said he was very disappointed in the verdict.
"Despite our disappointment in the jurors' verdict, we believe in the American justice system and we believe in the jury system. We intend to file a motion for a new trial and if that is denied, we will appeal the conviction, and we have every confidence that ultimately Mr. Libby will be vindicated," he said.
"We believe, as we said at the time of the indictment, that he is totally innocent, totally innocent and that he did not do anything wrong," Wells continued.
The guilty verdicts on four charges means Libby faces a combined penalty of up to 25 years in prison. Federal sentencing guidelines call for a shorter sentence. Walking out of the courtroom, Libby's face was expressionless. His wife's eyes were red and puffy after sobbing in the courtroom. He face was also flushed.
The jury was released shortly after noon. Judge Reggie Walton expressed his gratitude to the panel for its service.
"I would like to publicly thank you for all the time you have given to the case. We know it is an inconvenience. I can't say I have seen a better group of jurors ... (your work) epitomizes what our judicial system is supposed to be about," Walton said.
The 11-member jury was made up of seven females and four males. One female juror was dropped from the jury during the third day of deliberations after she claimed to have a conflict of interest. The 12th juror was not replaced by an alternate.
Libby was accused of perjury, obstruction of justice and lying to FBI agents and the grand jury about how he learned about Valerie Plame's identity and whom he told. Plame is the CIA employee whose husband, Amb. Joe Wilson, was sent to Niger by the agency to investigate claims that Iraq had tried to buy yellowcake uranium.
Wilson became a vocal critic of the Bush administration for using bad intelligence to justify the attack on Iraq. Libby and others, including President Bush aide Karl Rove, were implicated for trying to out Plame in retaliation for Wilson's criticism.
Jurors heard 19 witnesses during the five-week trial, but Libby was not called to the stand. Among the witnesses testifying were journalists Cooper, Tim Russert of NBC and Judy Miller of The New York Times. Miller spent 85 days in jail so as not to reveal her source. She testified for the prosecution, led by Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald.
Long after the investigation began, it was revealed that Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage, an administration member who opposed the war, was the first to leak Plame's name to the media. Armitage was never charged with violating the Intelligence Identities Protection Act, which punishes those who out secret agents.
In fact, the court never determined nor did it allow any evidence in Libby's trial about whether Plame was undercover or not and whether Libby violated the IIPA. Questions about Libby's motive were tested by the assertion that he had no reason to lie if Plame was represented to him as an analyst, he never knew she was undercover nor had reason to lie about his knowledge of her role in sending Wilson to Niger.
Democrats who have long been critics of the administration applauded the jury's decision.
"It's about time someone in the Bush administration has been held accountable for the campaign to manipulate intelligence and discredit war critics," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. "Lewis Libby has been convicted of perjury, but his trial revealed deeper truths about Vice President Cheney's role in this sordid affair. Now President Bush must pledge not to pardon Libby for his criminal conduct."
"The jury has spoken," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Plame and her husband have since left government and are in the process of developing a movie about the case with Warner Bros. and producer Jerry Zucker. Plame also has a $2 million book deal if the CIA ever permits her to publish her story.
After completing their ninth day of deliberations without a verdict Monday, jurors passed U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton three questions. All related to what Libby told the FBI regarding his 2003 telephone conversation with Cooper about Plame.
Cooper says Libby confirmed that Plame worked at the CIA. Libby told FBI agents that he only told Cooper he'd heard about Plame from other reporters but didn't know for sure whether she worked at the CIA.
In their questions, which were released Tuesday morning, jurors seemed confused about what Fitzgerald was alleging.
Were prosecutors saying Libby knew that Plame worked for the CIA by the time of his FBI interview, jurors asked, or does the government believe Libby's account of the Cooper conversation was untrue?
"To be clear, Mr. Libby is charged in count three with making a false statement to the FBI about what was said during his July 12, 2003, conversation with Mr. Cooper. Mr. Libby is not charged with making a false statement to Mr. Cooper. ... To be clear, count three does not allege, nor does the prosecution contend, that Mr. Libby told the FBI that, at the time of his FBI interviews, he did not know that Mr. Wilson's wife worked for the CIA," Walton responded to one of the jury questions.
FOX News' Jim Angle and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,256965,00.html