FindLaw's Anthony Sebok a YEAR ago: Should Plame sue Rove?

[im10ashus]

Time just slips away from us.

"A civil suit can be an excellent way to force information into the open." Anthony Sebok

Should Plame sue Rove?

(FindLaw) -- In my previous column, I raised the possibility that Valerie Plame might want to sue Karl Rove in a private lawsuit, if he indeed revealed her identity as a CIA agent. Since I wrote that column, there have been very few important factual revelations about the Plame affair. However, as recent news reports have made clear, it is not obvious that Karl Rove or anyone in the White House involved in the Plame affair broke any criminal laws.

However, even if no one in the White House committed a crime (or can be proven to have committed a crime), it is possible that someone there wrongfully injured Plame, and that Plame can sue for damages in a civil lawsuit.

If all the White House did was confirm what journalists knew, then Plame's complaint is with those journalists and whoever outside the White House got them their information. But if the White House had a hand in providing Plame's identity to the media, then she might still want to consider suing the individual or individuals in the government who harmed her.

Why discovery could happen
In my last column, I noted that it would be difficult for Plame to sue Karl Rove, or any White House aide, in his individual capacity, unless she could show that her constitutional rights were knowingly violated or that she was harmed by a knowing violation of a federal law.

cont'd.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/LAW/07/29/sebok.rove2/index.html

[ananda]

1. ermm, afaik..

.. it's not only a crime, it's a lot worse: high treason.

Rove and Cheney got away with largely successful, so far,
practices that are destroying not only this country but the world.

Sue

[im10ashus]

2. I think it is summed up best in the final paragraph of that article:

The Plame affair is about national security, among other things. But at its heart, it is about an individual whose interests in tort may have been violated. She should have the power to seek redress for herself if she wishes, without having to ask the permission of anyone.