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CNN Live At Daybreak
Anne Marie Smith to Ask Grand Jury for Criminal Indictment of Gary Condit
Aired August 27, 2001 - 07:31 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: Well, Congressman Gary Condit's denial of a relationship with flight attendant Anne Marie Smith in last week's televised interview is prompting some angry responses from her attorney. Attorney Jim Robinson joins us now from Modesto, California.
Good morning, Mr. Robinson.
JIM ROBINSON, ATTORNEY FOR ANNE MARIE SMITH: Good morning, how are you?
LIN: Well, I'm doing just fine.
Now Congressman Gary Condit in last week's interview said about Anne Marie Smith, I didn't ask anyone to lie about anything. This, of course, regarding the affidavit she claims that one of his staffers tried to get her to sign. He said I did not ask Anne Marie to not cooperate with law enforcement. That is an absolute untruth. And he also says that she is trying to take advantage of this tragedy.
Are you still planning on filing some sort of legal action against the congressman?
ROBINSON: Yes, California allows the victim of a crime -- in this sense, the crime is suborning perjury -- to go directly to a grand jury through the foreman of the grand jury and request a criminal indictment directly without going through the district attorney, which is what we intend to do this morning, and ask for three criminal indictments to be handed down to Congressman Condit, to his chief of staff Mike Lynch and to his investigator Don Thornton in San Mateo County.
LIN: Why are you moving forward on this matter? I mean considering that Congressman Gary Condit here is facing a possible House investigation, possible loss of his position on the House Intelligence Committee, CNN's latest poll indicates that support is declining in his own district, isn't public opinion, at this point, really the best verdict in this case?
ROBINSON: Well, we're talking about a crime here. All people are equal before the law. There's multiple jurisdiction in here. There's not just jurisdiction on the suborning of perjury and obstructive of justice in Washington, D.C., most of these acts happened in the state of California. California law has jurisdiction. Venue is proper in Santa Mateo County and that's why we're here in Santa Mateo County. This is the jurisdiction of interest and that's why we're here.
LIN: Jim Robinson, also right near you in Modesto, California, is CNN's Bob Franken who's been covering this story right from the very beginning -- Bob.
BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Suborning perjury, attempting to cause perjury, for those who don't have their Blacks Law Dictionary...
ROBINSON: Yes, yes.
FRANKEN: ... present.
The one thing that we haven't discussed here is the affidavit, which is part of the basis for what you're planning to do. This affidavit in which Anne Marie Smith was asked to say that there was not a romantic relationship also has at the top of it a header which says to her, feel free to edit, change, revise any way you want. Isn't that an indication that they were saying say whatever you want that there was no intent to cause perjury?
ROBINSON: Oh that's not the case. On June 14, the day before I received that affidavit, I talked with Mr. Thornton extensively about what we were talking about. He, at that time, faxed me a copy of the "Star" article that was to come out the next day. I had that article with me in my hand when I was talking to Mr. Thornton, and everybody knows it goes into great detail about the sexual relationship.
And I said the problem with this article, Mr. Thornton, is that it's true. And he stated to me directly: "Yes, I know it's true. However, I think we can fit this with an affidavit."
FRANKEN: Nevertheless, the affidavit did have that invitation for her to revise it.
ROBINSON: I called him back and I said I don't know what you want me to change, but if you want me to change yes for -- yes to no, black to white, I'm not going to do it.
FRANKEN: What about his contention that he did not, in fact, consider this a relationship no matter what the -- I'm trying to quote the exact words of Abbe Lowell, his lawyer, -- no matter what transpired between them?
ROBINSON: The relationship that everybody was talking about with that affidavit was the relationship discussed in the "Star" magazine article of June 15.
FRANKEN: Which was a sexual relationship?
ROBINSON: Absolutely.
FRANKEN: Now you are going not before the grand jury, as I understand it, but as I understand the law here, a commission which will decide whether to put this...
ROBINSON: It's actually a subcommittee of the grand jury, which is led by the grand jury foreman.
FRANKEN: So we would not expect today to have a decision on whether the grand jury will take it up, is that correct?
ROBINSON: The grand jury can do several things. The grand jury can vote right now and issue indictments based on the two affidavits which are testimony of myself and Anne Marie are submitting. The jury can issue subpoenas. They can issue a subpoena to command Congressman Condit to appear before him -- before the grand jury. If that happens, he's not going to be able to do what he did last Thursday.
FRANKEN: You are here with the support of Judicial Watch, which is a Washington organization, which was known during the Clinton administration for repeatedly filing lawsuits against that administration. Invariably this is going to raise the charge that what you're doing is a partisan effort here to get the Democrat Gary Condit.
ROBINSON: I have -- you know I don't know Judicial Watch. I've had no contact with Judicial Watch. I was actually talking to Ernie Norris who is a former prosecutor in Los Angeles County for 35 years. I'm not a -- I'm not a member of the California bar, mind you. I was not aware of this procedure in California and that's why I contacted Ernie Norris and that's their role in this. But I remain Anne Marie's attorney.
FRANKEN: In your public comments you've also spoken of your belief that in the course of his interviews Congressman Condit has defamed, libeled, slandered your client Anne Marie Smith. Are you also planning civil action in that regard?
ROBINSON: We've got a three-year statute of limitations on that. We'll take up that -- take that up later. So we do not have any intention to bring that up now.
FRANKEN: So your first action is this criminal action attempt?
ROBINSON: Yes, we're attempting to have the congressman indicted, yes.
FRANKEN: Carol.
LIN: Thank you very much, Bob Franken, reporting live in Modesto, as well as Jim Robinson, attorney for Anne Marie Smith.
And CNN plans live coverage of Jim Robinson's news conference today at 1:30 p.m. Eastern where you might hear more about these criminal charges, but you just got a preview right here on DAYBREAK.
And please join us tonight at 9:00 p.m. Eastern when Chad Condit, the congressman's son, is a guest on CNN's "LARRY KING LIVE."
Chad Condit, who works for the governor, Gray Davis, the Democrat in California.
VINCE: Looking forward to hearing that.
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