Prosecutor in Leak Case Wants to Convene New Grand Jury
By DAVID STOUT
nytimes.com
( Can his Bush-appointed boss say no? TWO MORE YEARS! )
WASHINGTON, Nov. 18 - The special prosecutor in the C.I.A. leak case announced today that he wants to convene a new federal grand jury, a clear signal that the indictment of I. Lewis Libby Jr. may not be the last episode in the affair.
"The investigation is continuing," the prosecutor, Patrick J. Fitzgerald, said in a court filing here. He said the investigation would now involve a grand jury different from the one that indicted Mr. Libby, a top aide to Vice President Dick Cheney, three weeks ago.
Mr. Libby has been charged with obstruction of justice, perjury and making false statements in connection with an investigation into who leaked the name of Valerie Wilson, a covert operative for the Central Intelligence Agency whose husband, the former diplomat Joseph C. Wilson IV, was highly critical in 2002 of the Bush administration's rationale for war against Iraq.
Mr. Libby was not accused of leaking Ms. Wilson's name to journalists but, rather, of trying to impede efforts to find out who did. He has resigned from Mr. Cheney's staff and has pleaded not guilty.
Well before his indictment, Mr. Libby was known to be a focus of Mr. Fitzgerald's inquiry. Lawyers who are familiar with the affair have said that President Bush's key aide Karl Rove also remains under investigation.
The identity of Mrs. Wilson was disclosed by the columnist Robert D. Novak in July 2003. But it came to light this week that Bob Woodward, the Washington Post journalist of Watergate fame, testified recently that he was told about Ms. Wilson in June 2003, weeks before Mr. Novak's column appeared.
Some defenders of Mr. Libby have argued that the revelation that Mr. Woodward had early knowledge of Mrs. Wilson's identity casts doubt on the case against Mr. Libby. Mr. Woodward has written several books about the inner workings of Washington. His known access to people at the highest levels of power has stirred speculation on who told him about Mrs. Wilson.
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