Presidential confidant Karl Rove will testify for a fourth time before the federal grand jury investigating the leak of a CIA officer's identity even though prosecutors have warned they can no longer guarantee he will escape indictment, lawyers said Thursday.
Rove's offer was accepted by Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald in the last week as the grand jury's wraps up its work and decides whether Rove, Vice President Cheney's chief of staff I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby or any other presidential aides should face criminal charges.
Rove's lawyer said Thursday that Fitzgerald has assured him that he has made no decisions yet on charges and that his client has not received a so-called target letter, usually the last step before a grand jury indictment.
"I can say categorically that Karl has not received a target letter from the special counsel," attorney Robert Luskin said. "The special counsel has confirmed that he has not made any charging decisions in respect to Karl."
Luskin said that Rove "continues to be cooperative voluntarily" with the investigation but that he could not further discuss his dealings with Fitzgerald's office.
However, several people directly familiar with the investigation told The Associated Press that Fitzgerald sent a letter accepting Rove's offer to testify but warning prosecutors could no longer guarantee the presidential aide wouldn't be indicted.
Rove offered in July to return to the grand jury, and Fitzgerald accepted that offer last Friday after taking grand jury testimony from the formerly jailed New York Times reporter Judith Miller, the people said, speaking only on condition of anonymity because of grand jury secrecy.
No comments:
Post a Comment