Judge orders Time reporter jailed and fined - won't reveal CIA leak

[Dover]

Judge orders Time reporter jailed and fined

Journalist won't reveal his source for a CIA leak
By ADAM LIPTAK
New York Times News Service

WASHINGTON - A federal judge in Washington held a reporter for Time magazine in contempt of court Monday and ordered him jailed for refusing to name the government officials who disclosed the identity of a CIA officer to him. The magazine was also held in contempt and ordered to pay a fine of $1,000 a day.

The judge, Thomas F. Hogan of U.S. District Court, suspended both sanctions while Time and its reporter, Matthew Cooper, pursued an appeal, but the judge firmly rejected their contention that the First Amendment entitled journalists to refuse to answer a grand jury's questions about confidential sources.

"The information requested," Hogan wrote, "is very limited; all available means of obtaining the information have been exhausted; the testimony sought is necessary for completion of the investigation, and the testimony sought is expected to constitute direct evidence of innocence or guilt.".....cont'd

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/nation/2727296

[daveskilt]

1. and novak is next for jailtime? I hope so. nt

[amber dog democrat]

6. Sic ' em !

I would LOVE to see Novak in an orange jump suit. Maybe this might remind journalists there are consequences to treasonous activity.
This is the first time a NOC agent has been publicaly outed in the press.
May the consequences come down like a ton of bricks!

[asjr]

10. This is what burns me up. Novak was treasonous. He is the one

who "outed" Plame and should pay the price. Treason is a crime against the country.

[amber dog democrat]

11. So why is Novak being protected ?

I don't get it. There must be some very interesting discussions going on behind the scenes at his newspaper. in the DOJ, White House, and in Dick Cheney's offices.
Oh to be the fly on the wall. Whom are they going to throw to the wolves ?

[allemand]

2. Why Cooper and not Novak?

Josh Marshall asks:

"Of course, all of this leaves rather a mystery about why Fitzgerald is picking on Cooper and Russert, while not putting the same screws to Robert Novak -- the man who clearly could give the most salient and probative testimony in this case and who, let's be frank, most deserves to be put in this position.

He, after all, is the one who actually chose to report the leak and become the hand-maiden of the bad act."

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/week_2004_08_08.php#003263

[CookieD]

15. They'll get to Novak near the end of the investigation

That's just the way these things work. First you get information from the bit players, then you confront those who know the most. It's called setting a perjury trap.

FWIW, it doesn't appear they have made too much progress. At this rate nothing will break until after November '04.

[JerseygirlCT]

3. I have a naive question:

what purpose is served by Cooper or others in maintaining their silence on this issue?

They're not keeping an innocent person from harm; they're protecting a criminal from justice. And what is gained from that? Their career, I suppose? How does that weigh against the public good here?

[LeftHander]

16. Probably a delaying tactic...

To keep the Special Prosecutor from finishing and issuing indictments until after election

[Justice]

4. If Russert Cooperated, Why Jail Cooper?

If Russert cooperated and told Fitzgerald who leaked to Russert -- then doesn't Fitzgerald have his answer?

Does Fitzgerald think more than one person leaked? Or does telling two people bolster the claim that the leak was intentional?

[Ganja Ninja]

5. Near as I can tell the first amendment doesn't protect ....

conspiracy to commit a felony.

[amber dog democrat]

7. It does not

There is no shield law that protects reporters from covering felonys.
There never was.

[RUSTY SHACKLEFORD]

8. The CIA needs to be dismantled piece by piece. N/T

[tomfodw]

9. "Exhausted"?

Why not subpoena Bush & Cheney?

If Bush really wanted to know who did it, all he'd have to do is summon his senior staff and order them to confess. Who would dare lie to his president? They've had over a year! Bush knows who did it, and he can't dare reveal the name because it's either Rove or Cheney or someone important on Cheney's staff, and they don't want their treason to come out. This is just stonewalling, pure & simple.

Same old game: blame the media. And, if we don't make them pay for it at the polls this November, they'll get away with it again.

[underpants]

12. Why are they going after the reporters?

I fully support journalists right not to reveal sources and in this case there is no need to-subpoena all the reasonably possible White Housers and have them testify, if you get to the last one and no one has fessed up (really there are only about 8 people it could be) then go back and ask them again and again and again.

The bottom line is we need TWO names.

[Dover]

13. Here's the AP story

as posted by another DUer:

http://www.thedesertsun.com/news/stories2004/national/20040810001807.shtml

[LeftHander]

14. Kick for the Plamers nt

[Moderator]

17. Please update this story and discuss here, thanks

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=738579&mesg_id=738579