"SCOOTER" Libby To Drop Appeal In CIA Leak Case

[kpete]

LIBBY to drop appeal in CIA leak case
By MATT APUZZO, Associated Press Writer


WASHINGTON - Former White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby is dropping his appeal in the CIA leak case, his attorney said Monday.

Libby, the former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, was convicted of perjury and obstruction for lying about his conversations with reporters about outed CIA operative Valerie Plame.

"We remain firmly convinced of Mr. Libby's innocence," attorney Theodore Wells said. "However, the realities were, that after five years of government service by Mr. Libby and several years of defending against this case, the burden on Mr. Libby and his young family of continuing to pursue his complete vindication are too great to ask them to bear."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071210/ap_on_go_ot/cia_leak_trial_2

[Cerridwen]

1. May I translate?

"I don't want it brought back into the spotlight now that other diversions have helped me hide from public view." Scooter

edit to add: "not to mention the fact that I might be 'found guilty'...again and * won't be in office to 'pardon' me." Scooter

[BR_Parkway]

2. Could he be found guilty again after being pardoned? seems like

double jeopardy to me, but I'd be happy to see him in orange

[Cerridwen]

3. That's why I put it in quotes.

I'm not sure what the legal precedence is for losing an appeal after being...he wasn't pardoned, his sentence was nullified, wasn't it? Sorry, caffeine not quite to the brain yet; or it's just a senior moment. :D

[Ganja Ninja]

6. Let me translate that into Rick James speak.

"Bwhahahah! I'm Scooter Libby bi**ch!" "I'm rich bi**ch!"

[Poiuyt]

4. I think he knows that Bush will be granting him a pardon when he leaves office

[jbonkowski]

5. More accurately

He knows that per DOJ guidelines, presidential pardons are usually only considered if the person ends appeals and admits guilt.

This will allow his eventual pardon (right before Bush leaves office) seem as routine as possible.

jim

[Cerridwen]

7. Ah, the missing piece of the puzzle.

Thank you, jbonkowski.

[gratuitous]

8. Mr. Attorney? Mr. Wells?

"Innocent" men pursue their appeals, in my experience. And since the cost of an appeal is actually pretty small (at least compared to the expense of a criminal trial), this nonsense about a burden hardly rings true. I'd say that guilt is a bigger burden than any financial cost. But that would just be my opinion based on the fact that I'm not guilty of any crimes, and if I was convicted of one, I'd fight like hell to clear my name.