Douglas Caddy Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 (edited) Watergate Files Released: Once-Secret Files Published By U.S. Government (VIDEO) By STEPHEN BRAUN and RICHARD LARDNER 11/30/12 07:07 PM ET EST(AP) http://www.huffingto...html?1354309867 WASHINGTON — Watergate Judge John J. Sirica aided the prosecution in pursuing the White House connection to the Democratic headquarters break-in by providing the special prosecutor information from a probation report in which one of the burglars said he was acting under orders from top Nixon administration officials, according to once-secret documents released Friday by the National Archives. One newly public transcript of an in-chambers meeting between Sirica, the U.S. District Court judge in charge of the case, and then-Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox in July 1973 shows the judge revealed secret probation reports indicating that E. Howard Hunt had cited orders from officials high up in the Nixon administration. Several of Hunt's co-defendants had previously denied any White House involvement in court testimony, and Sirica told Cox and other prosecutors that he felt the new information "seemed to me significant." The government released more than 850 pages from the Watergate political scandal, providing new insights on privileged legal conversations and prison evaluations of several of the burglars in the case. A federal judge had decided earlier this month to unseal some material, but other records still remain off limits. The files do not appear to provide any significant new revelations in the 40-year-old case that led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon and criminal prosecutions of many of his top White House and political aides. But the files provide useful context for historians, revealing behind-the-scenes deliberations by Sirica, the U.S. District Court judge in charge of the case, along with prosecutors and defense lawyers. The documents stem from the prosecution of five defendants arrested during the June 1972 Watergate break-in and two men, Hunt and G. Gordon Liddy, who were charged as the burglary team's supervisors. All seven men were convicted. In the conversations between Cox and Sirica, the special prosecutor agreed with the judge's concerns that the probation report should be sealed and thanked him for the information. Cox promised that his team would not divulge the new information unless they felt there was a prosecutorial need and returned for a hearing to make it public. "Unless we came back," Cox told Sirica, "we wouldn't reveal it." Former Nixon White House lawyer John Dean, who cooperated with prosecutors and testified against Nixon during an explosive congressional hearing in June 1973, said Friday after reviewing some of the newly released files that he believed Sirica "was very aggressive for a judge, even more than the White House was aware of at the time. No one in the Nixon White House knew exactly where he was coming from." Dean added that while Sirica's investigative zeal was well-known, his dealings with Cox and other prosecutors were "eye-opening." U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth ordered the files unsealed earlier this month after a request from Luke Nichter, a professor at Texas A&M University-Central Texas. Nichter wrote Lamberth in 2009 asking for release of the materials. Lamberth held back other sealed materials but agreed to ask the Justice department to explain the reasoning for keeping those materials secret. The documents released by the Archives also reinforce Sirica's reputation as a gruff, no-nonsense jurist. During pretrial hearings in December 1972, Hunt's defense attorney sought to delay the trial after the former CIA man's wife was killed in a plane crash. Sirica refused to put the trial on hold unless there was proof Hunt was suffering from a serious medical condition, according to the transcripts. "If he is just emotionally upset, that, in my opinion, is not a valid excuse," Sirica said. "If he gets tired during the day, I will arrange for him to go down and take a rest for two or three hours if he wishes." A doctor who examined Hunt said in a letter to Sirica in early January 1973 that he suffered from ulcers and other gastrointestinal ailments but "has sufficient present ability to consult with his lawyer." The doctor, Charles E. Law Sr., said he was worried that Hunt would weep in court, especially when questioned by prosecutors. Reports from prison psychiatrists and probation officers also show that four of Hunt's co-defendants justified their role in the Watergate break-in on national security grounds, saying they were under orders to search for evidence that Cuban government funds supported Democratic party campaigns. Dean said Friday that Hunt once told him that excuse was a ruse used to persuade the others to participate in the burglary. ___ Online: http://www.archives....us-v-liddy.html Unsealed Materials from U.S. v. Liddy On May 1, 2009, Professor Luke Nichter of Texas A&M University-Central Texas petitioned Chief Judge Royce Lamberth of the District Court for the District of Columbia to release records sealed in the case of U.S. v. Liddy, the Watergate break-in case. The sealed proceedings include evidentiary discussions held outside the jury's hearing, pretrial discussions between defendants' lawyers and the Court, and post-trial sentencing information. On November 2, 2012, the District Court for the District of Columbia ordered most of these records to be unsealed, given the passage of time, completion of the criminal proceedings, and non-invasive nature of the content. Consistent with the recommendation of the Department of Justice, the court ordered that the following categories of records remain sealed, pending further review by the court: · Personal documents regarding living individuals; · Documents regarding the content of illegally obtained wiretaps; and · Grand Jury information. Accordingly, the court directed the National Archives to release the uncontested records within 30 days from the date of the Order. The National Archives is therefore releasing the previously sealed records from U.S. v. Liddy, with the three categories of contested materials removed and marked "Court Sealed." If/when the Court later unseals additional materials, the National Archives will make them available. NARA is releasing 36 folders of documents totaling approximately 950 pages. A folder title list is below: Box 1 Kevan Hunt affidavit; 8 pages, partially sealed. Grand Jury transcript; 15 pages, partially sealed. Letters from doctors re E.H. Hunt's health; 8 pages, partially sealed. Proceedings 12/15/1972 re Times Mirror subpoena; 12 pages, open in full. (7.5 MB) #241 Proceedings 1/2/1973 discussion of how Judge Sirica would listen to the Baldwin interview tapes; 9 pages, open in full. Proceedings 1/5/1973 discussion of Baldwin testimony; 49 pages, partially sealed. (21.96 MB) #190 Proceedings 1/5/1973 discussion of serving of Exhibit A on counsel (exhibits A-C are referred to in Item #6); 9 pages, open in full. #205A Proceedings 1/17/1973 discussion of Baldwin testimony; 53 pages, partially sealed. (30.21 MB) Exhibits B & C (exhibits A-C are referred to in Item #6); 12 pages, partially sealed. Exhibit A (exhibits A-C are referred to in Item #6); 6 pages, open in full. #207 Judge Sirica opinion filed 1/18/1973 on admissibility of overhears; 8 pages, open in full. Six cassette tapes of interview of Alfred Baldwin (will be released at a later date) #159 Transcript of interview of Alfred Baldwin; 181 pages, partially sealed. Proceedings 12/4/1972 (2 copies) re concerns by burglar's counsel about possible new indictment; 5 pages, open in full. #135 Proceedings 12/4/1972 re various pre-trial tasks; 122 pages, open in full. (62.96 MB) Proceedings 12/15/1972 (2 copies) re E.H. Hunt physical and mental health after his wife's death (bench conference portion of Item #4); 4 pages, partially sealed. #189 Proceedings 1/8/1973, pp. 71-75 re E.H. Hunt physical and mental health after his wife's death; 7 pages, partially sealed. Box 2 #191 Proceedings 1/9/1973 re possible Hunt guilty plea; 12 pages, partially sealed. #197 Proceedings 1/12/1973 folder contains only the steno tape, the transcript was unsealed in 1981; 3 pages, open in full. #287 Proceedings 1/24/1973, pp. 1490-1500G Judge Sirica's suggestions as to further investigation; 21 pages, partially sealed. (10 MB) #288 Proceedings 1/26/1973 re electronic surveillance; 16 pages, open in full. #289 Proceedings 1/27/1973 re telephone message from Gary Sellers re evidence; 5 pages, open in full. #339 Proceedings 7/17/1973 new evidence re E.H. Hunt; 26 pages, open in full. (14.86 MB) #342 Proceedings 7/24/1973 re burglars and their representation; 24 pages, partially sealed. #344 Proceedings 8/7/1973 (3 copies) re sentencing of the burglars; 23 pages, open in full. (13.66 MB) #362 Proceedings 9/17/1973 (3 copies) re meeting with Bernard Barker; 16 pages, open in full. (11.64 MB) #361 Proceedings 9/17/1973 re sentencing; 14 pages, partially sealed. #385 Proceedings 10/16/1973 (2 copies) re sentencing issues; 9 pages, open in full. (7.3 MB) Box 3 Presentence reports and Bureau of Prisons evaluations on Barker, Sturgis, Martinez, and Gonzalez ; 104 pages, partially sealed. (22.93 MB) #360 Sealed addendum to Government's motion re McCord's writ of error coram nobis; 4 pages, open in full. #176 Letters and filings re McCord's writ of error coram nobis; 5 pages, open in full. #363 Proceedings 1/3/1973 re McCord's writ of error coram nobis; 9 pages, open in full. #380 Proceedings 10/11/1973 McCord's writ of error coram nobis; 7 pages, open in full. Court of Appeals receipts; 6 pages, open in full. Hunt passport, Jenkins statement, Martinez diary; 22 pages, open in full. (10.83 MB) Liddy insurance papers; 24 pages, partially sealed. (10 pages released and 14 pages withheld in full). PDF files require the free Adobe Reader. More information on Adobe Acrobat PDF files is available on our Accessibility page. Edited December 1, 2012 by Douglas Caddy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Simkin Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 Watergate Files Released: Once-Secret Files Published By U.S. Government (VIDEO) By STEPHEN BRAUN and RICHARD LARDNER 11/30/12 07:07 PM ET EST(AP) http://www.huffingto...html?1354309867 Reports from prison psychiatrists and probation officers also show that four of Hunt's co-defendants justified their role in the Watergate break-in on national security grounds, saying they were under orders to search for evidence that Cuban government funds supported Democratic party campaigns. Dean said Friday that Hunt once told him that excuse was a ruse used to persuade the others to participate in the burglary. ___ I found that the most interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malcolm Ward Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 Watergate scandal: secret files released Previously undisclosed discussions involving John J Sirica, the Watergate judge, are revealed in 850 pages made public. The US government has released more than 850 pages from the Watergate political scandal, providing new insights on privileged legal conversations and prison evaluations of several of the burglars in the case. A federal judge had decided earlier in November to unseal some material, but other records still remain off limits. The files from the National Archives show that Judge John J Sirica aided the prosecution in pursuing the White House connection to the Democratic headquarters break-in at the Watergate Hotel in 1972. Sirica provided the special prosecutor information from a probation report in which one of the burglars said he was acting under orders from top Nixon administration officials One newly public transcript of an in-chambers meeting between Sirica, who was the US district court judge in charge of the case, and special prosecutor Archibald Cox in July 1973 shows the judge revealed secret probation reports indicating that E Howard Hunt had cited orders from officials high up in the Nixon administration. Several of Hunt's co-defendants had previously denied any White House involvement in court testimony, and Sirica told Cox and other prosecutors that he felt the new information "seemed to me significant". The files provide useful context for historians of the 40-year-old case, revealing behind-the-scenes deliberations by Sirica along with prosecutors and defense lawyers. The documents stem from the prosecution of five defendants arrested during the June 1972 Watergate break-in and two men, Hunt and G Gordon Liddy, who were charged as the burglary team's supervisors. All seven men were convicted. In the conversations between Cox and Sirica the special prosecutor agreed with the judge's concerns that the probation report should be sealed and thanked him for the information. Cox promised that his team would not divulge the new information unless they felt there was a prosecutorial need and returned for a hearing to make it public. "Unless we came back," Cox told Sirica, "we wouldn't reveal it." The former Nixon White House lawyer John Dean, who co-operated with prosecutors and testified against Nixon during an explosive congressional hearing in June 1973, said on Friday after reviewing some of the newly released files that he believed Sirica "was very aggressive for a judge, even more than the White House was aware of at the time. No one in the Nixon White House knew exactly where he was coming from." Dean added that while Sirica's investigative zeal was well-known his dealings with Cox and other prosecutors were "eye-opening". US District Judge Royce Lamberth in November ordered the files unsealed after a request from Luke Nichter, a professor at Texas A&M University-Central Texas. Nichter wrote to Lamberth in 2009 asking for release of the materials. Lamberth held back other sealed materials but agreed to ask the justice department to explain the reasoning for keeping those materials secret. The documents released by the archives reinforce Sirica's reputation as a gruff, no-nonsense jurist. During pretrial hearings in December 1972 Hunt's defence attorney sought to delay the trial after the former CIA man's wife was killed in a plane crash. Sirica refused to put the trial on hold unless there was proof Hunt was suffering from a serious medical condition, according to the transcripts. "If he is just emotionally upset, that, in my opinion, is not a valid excuse," Sirica said. "If he gets tired during the day I will arrange for him to go down and take a rest for two or three hours if he wishes." A doctor who examined Hunt said in a letter to Sirica in early January 1973 that he suffered from ulcers and other gastrointestinal ailments but "has sufficient present ability to consult with his lawyer". The doctor, Charles E Law Sr, said he was worried that Hunt would weep in court, especially when questioned by prosecutors. Reports from prison psychiatrists and probation officers show that four of Hunt's co-defendants justified their role in the Watergate break-in on national security grounds, saying they were under orders to search for evidence that Cuban government funds supported Democratic party campaigns. Dean said on Friday that Hunt once told him that excuse was a sham used to persuade the others to participate in the burglary. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/dec/01/watergate-scandal-secret-files-revealed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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