Prosecutors Considering Dropping Espionage Charges Against Former AIPAC Lobbyists

So are these Israel agents getting lucky or did something happen behind the scene?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/21/AR2009042102602.html

Prosecutors Considering Dropping Espionage Charges Against Former AIPAC Lobbyists
Review Comes Amid Reports That Rep. Harman Was Overheard on Wiretaps Agreeing to Seek Lenient Treatment for Them

By Jerry Markon
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, April 21, 2009; 4:24 PM

Federal prosecutors are considering whether to drop the charges against two former pro-Israel lobbyists accused of violating the Espionage Act, law enforcement sources and lawyers close to the case said today.

The review comes amid reports that Rep. Jane Harman (D-Calif.) was overheard on federal wiretaps agreeing to seek lenient treatment for the two lobbyists from the Bush administration. The sources said the prospect of dropping the charges is unrelated to the disclosures about Harman's alleged role.

The review of the case against Steven J. Rosen and Keith Weissman was triggered by a series of recent court rulings that make it harder for the government to win convictions, the sources said. Those included an appeals court decision allowing the defense to use classified information at trial and a judge's ruling that said prosecutors must show the two men knew the information they allegedly disclosed would harm the United States. That set a high bar for prosecutors because criminal intent can be difficult to prove.


The former lobbyists for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee are charged with conspiring to obtain classified information and pass it to journalists and the Israeli government.

It is unclear when a decision will be made about whether to proceed with the case, but sources said they expect one soon because the trial is set for June 2 in U.S. District Court in Alexandria. The sources described the review as a legal analysis examining the recent court rulings and whether prosecutors can meet their burden of proof. They said the review was not begun by political appointees from the Obama administration and would have been undertaken even if Republicans had retained the presidency.

The sources also said the review is unrelated to the revelations that Harman, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee for much of the Bush administration, was overheard on telephone calls intercepted by the federal government.

"It's not because 'oh, this is getting ink, it's getting too hot, we need to drop it,' '' said one law enforcement source, who was not authorized to speak about the case. "We would never do it for that reason.''

Any decision to seek to drop the charges would require approval from a federal judge.

As the review intensifies, both sides are preparing for trial. Defense lawyers recently again subpoenaed a number of prominent former government officials who are expected to testify for the defense. They include former secretary of state Condoleezza Rice, former national security adviser Stephen J. Hadley and former high-level Defense Department officials Paul D. Wolfowitz and Douglas J. Feith. Sources said defense lawyers recently interviewed several of these former officials.

Harman, meanwhile, sent Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. a letter today expressing outrage over the wiretapping of conversations she had with a man described in a Congressional Quarterly report as a "suspected Israeli agent" and demanding that the full transcripts of the tapes be released in unredacted form to the American public.

She also went on MSNBC to vehemently deny any wrongdoing.

"I am outraged to learn from reports leaked to the media over the last several days that the FBI or NSA secretly wiretapped my conversations in 2005 or 2006 while I was Ranking Member on the House Intelligence Committee," Rep. Harman wrote to Holder. "This abuse of power is outrageous and I call on your Department to release all transcripts and other investigative material involving me in an unredacted form. It is my intention to make this material available to the public."

Harman continued in the letter: "Let me be absolutely clear: I never contacted the Department of Justice, the White House or anyone else to seek favorable treatment regarding the national security cases on which I was briefed, or any other cases. You may be aware that David Szady, the FBI's former top counterintelligence official, is quoted in the media saying of me '. . . in all my dealings with her, she was always professional and never tried to intervene or get in the way of any investigation.' "

She wrote: "I also urge you to take appropriate steps to investigate possible wiretapping of other Members of Congress and selective leaks of investigative material which can be used for political purposes. As you know, it is entirely appropriate to converse with advocacy organizations and constituent groups, and I am concerned about a chilling effect on other elected officials who may find themselves in my situation."

"If there are tapes out there, bring it on!" Harman told MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell. "That's what I've asked Attorney General Holder to do, to release any tapes."

She said that the first time she learned of the wiretaps was when the CQ reporter, Jeff Stein, contacted her office after hours last Thursday evening.

"I was never notified by the Justice Department that I was under any form of investigation whatsoever," she said.

And she vehemently denied having lobbied the White House or Bush Justice Department over the investigation of two AIPAC officials. "I didn't contact the Justice Department or anybody in the administration, ever, asking for lenient sentences for anybody," she said.

"I've had a long friendship with AIPAC. I didn't need to cut some deal with AIPAC. . . . No deals were cut with any groups for any reason ever," she added.

Staff writer Garance Franke-Ruta contributed to this report.

 

Well, that highlighted part shows that they are very lucky. Beyond that, I leave it to your imagination.