John Edwards investigation reported
From Staff Reports
Published: Fri, Apr. 03, 2009
newsobserver.com
The National Enquirer reported on its Web site that a federal grand jury in Raleigh is investigating whether former Sen. John Edwards violated campaign-finance laws in his bid for president in 2008 by making payments to Rielle Hunter, his admitted mistress.
U.S. Attorney George Holding said Thursday that he "was not going to confirm or deny any investigation" regarding Edwards.
A federal grand jury was convened in Raleigh on Wednesday. Grand jury proceedings are secret.
Such grand juries have the power to call and question witnesses and request documents. Prosecutors interview witnesses in front of jurors. At the end of the query, the grand jury has the power to bring charges.
Wade Smith, a prominent Raleigh defense attorney and Edwards mentor, declined to comment on whether he was representing Edwards.
"I'm at a place where I cannot make any comment to confirm or deny," Smith said. "I can't say anything. It's possible, at some later point, I can."
Edwards got his start as a plaintiffs' attorney as a young associate in the firm headed by Smith. They are longtime friends.
Edwards, a former U.S. senator from North Carolina and twice failed Democratic candidate for president, has fallen hard since last summer. He admitted on national television that he cheated on his wife, Elizabeth, with Hunter, a video producer who was hired to work on his campaign.
Edwards has denied that he is the father of Hunter's daughter, who was born in February 2008. His former aide Andrew Young has claimed to be the father.
The late Fred Baron, former chairman of Edwards' 2004 and 2008 finance committee, said last summer that he paid, without Edwards' knowledge, Young and Hunter to relocate to California after they were hounded by tabloids in the wake of speculation about Edwards' liaison with Hunter.
A new book by Elizabeth Edwards, a breast cancer survivor, is due out in May. It is unclear whether she will address her husband's infidelity in the book, which is titled "Resilience: Reflections on the Burdens and Gifts of Facing Life's Adversities."
TV host Oprah Winfrey interviewed Elizabeth Edwards at the couple's Chapel Hill home last week, according to NationalJournal.com. The former senator was on hand for the interview, the publication reported. The program is scheduled to air May 11 and would be the first nationally televised interview by either since last summer. |
