www.justiceforchandra.com

[rd]

Here is an expansion of jane's Fox News alert. I like how Rita phrases it. "Though police never described him as a suspect in her disappearance...".

rd

from www.foxnews.com (fair use)

Condit Settles Lawsuit Against Writer Dunne
Monday, March 14, 2005

WASHINGTON — Former Rep. Gary Condit has settled his defamation lawsuit against Vanity Fair writer Dominick Dunne. The terms of the settlement were filed with the court on Monday and the case has now been dismissed without prejudice.

Dunne is issuing an undisclosed sum to Condit and releasing an apology saying some of the statements he made about Condit were misunderstood. The lawsuit originally sought $11 million in damages.

The announcement meant Condit did not have to testify under oath as scheduled about any sexual relationship he may have had with murdered Federal Bureau of Prisons intern Chandra Levy. Condit had originally been scheduled to testify on the relationship in February, but requested a delay citing illness.

Levy disappeared in May 2001, and Condit, who represented the Modesto area of California from which she hailed, fell under a shadow of suspicion. Though police never described him as a suspect in her disappearance, in March 2002 he lost the Democratic primary race for his 18th District seat to Dennis Cardoza. Levy's body was found in a national park in Washington, D.C., in May 2002.

Condit and his family blamed Dunne's comments for the primary loss. Last month, Condit attorney Lin Wood described why Condit was suing Dunne. He said Dunne appeared on national radio and television in December 2001 and accused Condit of "frequenting Middle Eastern embassies where he engaged in sexual activity with prostitutes, and during those times, he made it clear that he wanted someone to get rid of Chandra Levy. That conveyed that Gary Condit was involved in her kidnapping and in her murder, that friends of Gary Condit's had her kidnapped, put in an airplane and dropped in the Atlantic Ocean. That's why we're suing him."

Wood said Condit did have a friendship with Levy, but did not describe the nature of their relationship.

"Gary has described that relationship as a friendship, that they were close friends. Beyond that, obviously, I'm not here to speak to the private aspects of my client's life. It wouldn't be appropriate for me to do that. But he certainly has acknowledged a friendship with Chandra Levy," Wood told FOX News' Greta Van Susteren.

In a subsequent interview on the same show, Dunne attorney Paul Licalsi said Dunne's comments never indicated that Condit asked others to get rid of Levy.

"The theory was, what was said to Dominick was, those people took it into their own hands and took her away, that Condit did not have criminal liability for that, simply that he complained about his relationship with her and complained about the pressure he was under to the wrong people," Licalsi said.

In September 2004, Condit also settled a case against three tabloid papers on the day he was supposed to testify in that case. In July 2003, Condit's wife, Carolyn, settled a lawsuit with the National Enquirer for an undisclosed amount.

FOX News' Rita Cosby contributed to this report.

[laskipper]

Well I was asleep during all the excitement. I suppose it was predictable. Condit hasn't 'talked' in all these years- and as Flaminni pointed out- he never will. He sure did take it down to the wire, didn't he?

Rd, I'm certain the reason that Chad was railing against Geraldo had a great deal to do with the fact that he was aware of the settlement. That and the perceived 'rude' treatment in terms of being pushed aside by the 'breaking news' and given a much shorter segment probably had him enraged?

Visions of big money going up in flames?

I'm glad for Dominick Dunne that the case is over and he can get on with his life.

Cudos all around- do you suppose that Mr Dunne has a research position open on his staff? We could apply as a 'team'.

ls
_________________
A nation of sheep will beget a government of wolves
~
French philosopher Bertrand de Jouvenel (1903-1987)

[rd]

Not a bad idea, skipper. A heck of a sleuthing team on this board.

I agree, Chad's performance was a classic burn your bridges behind you flameout. They knew their bluff against Dominick had failed because Dunne and LiCalsi didn't blink as they took Condit right to the edge of truth.

Condit blinked when facing truth.

rd

[benn]

All right, rd, Condit blinked, or did he blink? Why is he treating his relationship with Chandra differently than all of his other relationships with various past women acquaintances, who came forward to tell the FBI about their affairs with him?

More than once I have came across a message, or differant messages, on the Internet that say that Condit did not have anything to do with Chandra's disappearance and murder because none of Condit's other girlfriends disappeared, or showed up murdered. That is sort of a broad assumption by some commentators because we do not know whom all of Condit's former girlfriends were, but assuming that is a correct deduction, that still leads us to another deduction.

Chandra is the only girlfriend of Condit's whom we know to be dead. Therefore it is very interesting that Condit is attempting to tell the world that he treated her differently from all of his other girlfriends, that she was just a good friend. She may have been a "good friend," but if so why is she different from all of the other woman whom he dated?

Could it be because Chandra is dead? She is the only girlfriend of Condit's whom we know to be dead, and she is the only girlfriend whom he refers to as a good friend. Can the truth be telling us something?

Law enforcement should be looking into this. Chandra's case is not closed. Law enforcement should be doing its job and look into why Condit wants to treat Chandra differently from his other girlfriends.

benn

[rd]

Here's CNN's coverage of the settlement. As benn says, Chandra's murder case is not closed. Condit won't answer questions under oath, won't answer questions with a lie detector test, and won't answer questions in front of a grand jury.

He told the police four stories in four interviews, and told Connie Chung a fifth story when he finally made a public appearance four months after Chandra disappeared. The stories he has told, the few answers he has given in civil suit depositions, and the questions he won't answer should be setting off alarms in prosecutors offices in DC and California.

Maybe he won't answer questions, but every question in Murder on a Horse Trail was intended for someone else.

rd


from www.cnn.com (fair use)

Report: Condit settles suit against writer
CNN
Tuesday, March 15, 2005

SACRAMENTO, California (AP) -- Former congressman Gary Condit has won an undisclosed sum of money and an apology from writer Dominick Dunne over his claims about the lawmaker's role in the 2001 disappearance of intern Chandra Levy, according to media reports.

The reports on the settlement with Dunne, a special correspondent to Vanity Fair, appeared Monday on The Sacramento Bee's Web site and on Fox News.

In a statement, Dunne said he did "not say or intend to imply that Mr. Condit was complicit in her disappearance, and to the extent my comments may have been misinterpreted, I apologize for them," The Bee reported.

Dunne specifically renounced statements he made on radio's "Laura Ingraham Show" in December 2001 in which he cited a man called "the horse whisperer" who told him Condit frequented Middle Eastern embassy sex parties, The Bee reported.

On "ET Online" in January 2002, Dunne was quoted as suggesting Levy was taken away by someone on a motorcycle as a favor to Condit. On CNN's "Larry King Live" in February 2002, Dunne stated: "I believe firmly that he knows more than what he has ever said."

In his lawsuit, Condit said he had no involvement in the disappearance and death of Levy and no knowledge of how she was abducted and killed or who was responsible. Levy's body was found in a park in Washington, D.C., in May 2002.

Condit had argued Dunne's statements led millions of people to believe he was criminally involved in Levy's death and contributed to his loss in the March 2002 primary election.

Neither Condit nor his attorney Lin Wood could be reached for comment Monday.

Condit settled libel lawsuits in December with American Media Inc., which publishes the National Enquirer, Star and Globe. The specifics were not released.

Levy, an intern with the Federal Bureau of Prisons, disappeared in May 2001, and Condit, who represented her hometown of Modesto, fell under a shadow of suspicion. Police never described him as a suspect.

Copyright 2005 The Associated Press

[rd]

whoa, I just lowered the estimated dollar amount of the settlement after reading this from the New York Daily News Front Page reported by Rush and Malloy.

Settled after midnight Sunday night?

That would have been not long after Chad's screamfest with Geraldo, live Sunday night at almost 11 pm. Chad was there in New York. Did Condit even go to New York to testify?

I thought he at least showed up with Wood in New York on Monday with LiCalsi and offered to settle, some face saving figure around $100,000 that Dunne would consider go away nuisance money.

But after midnight Sunday night? That's Condit backing out, won't even pretend he's going to answer questions. He must have been trying his calling in sick routine again and either Wood and or the judge told him it's over with.

An apology is all that Condit got, an apology for any misunderstandings. I think Carolyn got a very small settlement from American Media and got a house in Pheonix and a Baskin-Robbins franchise, but I don't think Condit has got a dime from his three lawsuits against American Media, USA Today, and Dominick Dunne.

It was all a bluff. He dare not answer any questions.

rd


from www.nydailynews.com (fair use)
March 15, 2005
Front Page

Condit suit is Dunne

Gary Condit settled his $11 million slander suit against Dominick Dunne at the 11th hour Sunday night - right before he was to testify about whether he had a sexual relationship with Chandra Levy, the Washington intern whose murder has never been solved.

It's just what he'd done with his libel suit against American Media, the supermarket tabloid owner.

Federal Judge Peter K. Leisure ordered a magistrate to depose Condit last week when he had refused to answer questions about the nature of his relationship with Levy.

Condit has admitted to a friendship with her. He has never been charged with her murder.

The former California Democratic congressman was due on the witness stand yesterday, but settled with the Vanity Fair writer just after midnight.

The sum was not disclosed, but in a joint statement Dunne said, "In my recounting of that story prior to the discovery of Ms. Levy's body, I did not say or intend to imply that Mr. Condit was complicit in her disappearance, and to the extent my comments may have been misinterpreted, I apologize for them."

Condit added: "I accept Mr. Dunne's apology and am pleased that this action has been amicably resolved."

Dunne wouldn't comment further to us, except to say, "I'm delighted; it's been 2-1/2 years of my life, and I'm going to England for 10 days and give myself a break."

[rd]

and a good wrapup as usual from Michael Doyle. End of the legal road for Condit, he says. Well, at least as a plaintiff.

rd

from www.modbee.com (fair use)

Condit, author settle lawsuit
Ex-congressman avoids deposition, gets apology

By settling, Condit doesn't have to answer questions about Chandra Levy.

By MICHAEL DOYLE
BEE WASHINGTON BUREAU
Last Updated: March 15, 2005

WASHINGTON — Former Rep. Gary Condit on Monday settled his $11 million defamation lawsuit against author Dominick Dunne, just as it was entering a crucial and potentially embarrassing phase.

With the settlement, Condit secured an apology, the payment of an undisclosed sum and the freedom from further intimate questions about his friendship with the late intern Chandra Levy.

"I did not say or intend to imply that Mr. Condit was complicit in her disappearance, and to the extent my comments may have been misinterpreted, I apologize for them," Dunne said in a brief statement.

Condit said he accepted Dunne's apology.

Levy, 24, a one-time Bureau of Prisons intern who was raised in Modesto, was last seen alive on April 30, 2001. Her skeletal remains were found more than a year later in a Washington, D.C., park, but her death has never been solved and police have not identified any suspects.

Condit described Levy in public as a "good friend" and has not denied published accounts that he told investigators he had a sexual relationship with her.

The lawsuit's settlement Monday morning coincided almost exactly with the scheduled start of a deposition that was going to press Condit for more details about that relationship. Previous depositions in this case have become public, and this one almost certainly would not have stayed secret for long.

"In a case like this, this is exactly what I would have expected," said Lucy Dalglish, executive director of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. "My guess is that each side had information, or thought they would get information, that the other side didn't want to get out."

Source called 'horse whisperer'

In bringing the lawsuit to an end, Dunne renounced a story he had told on the nationally broadcast "Laura Ingraham Show" in December 2001. On that radio show, and at fancy dinner parties, Dunne had cited a man called "the horse whisperer" as a source for claims that Condit had frequented Middle Eastern embassy sex parties.

Dunne said the man told him Condit had "created the environment that led to (Levy's) disappearance," through complaints that Levy was a "clinger" that the then-congressman "couldn't get rid of." Dunne cited his horse whisperer source as indicating Levy had been kidnapped and dropped into the Atlantic Ocean.

Five months after Dunne's "Laura Ingraham Show" appearance, Levy's remains were found.

"As I have publicly stated repeatedly since Chandra Levy's body was found in May 2002, I had been completely hoodwinked by the horse whisperer's story and now do not believe that source had any knowledge of the facts relating to Ms. Levy's disappearance," Dunne said.

He did not refer to or apologize for other statements he had made about the case on CNN's "Larry King Live" or in USA Today and the Boston Herald. Condit had cited those other statements in filing his original lawsuit.

Apparent end of legal road

Condit, who was defeated in his 2002 re-election bid, said Dunne's apology was satisfactory.

"I accept Mr. Dunne's apology and am pleased that this action has been amicably resolved," he said in his statement.

Condit represented the Northern San Joaquin Valley in Congress for more than 16 years. He and his family now own an ice cream shop in Glendale, Ariz.

The settlement ends Condit's string of lawsuits incited by media coverage of Levy's 2001 disappearance. None of the lawsuits that Condit or his wife, Carolyn, filed went to trial, nor did any force him to answer the most intimate questions.

In September 2004, Condit settled a $209 million defamation lawsuit filed against the National Enquirer, Star and Globe tabloid newspapers. That settlement also was confidential and did not include any public statement or apology. In order to win his lawsuit against Dunne, Condit would have had to prove the author either knowingly lied or spoke with reckless disregard for the truth or falsity of what he was saying. That high standard traditionally makes libel lawsuits hard to win for public figures, although Condit attorney L. Lin Wood maintained Dunne was vulnerable.

Even before Dunne appeared on the "Laura Ingraham Show," he acknowledged in his own deposition that he had concluded the horse whisperer lied on at least one point.

"And that is when you first began to doubt the truth of what he told you, right?" Wood asked.

"Yeah, yeah," Dunne said.

In his own first deposition, conducted last September, Condit declined to answer a number of questions about Levy, including whether they had a sexual relationship or physical intimacy of any kind.

Wood contended that such questions would lead to other lascivious questions irrelevant to the underlying lawsuit. But in a Dec. 8 opinion, U.S. District Judge Peter Leisure said the questions followed naturally from Condit's own actions.

The more intrusive deposition was scheduled for Feb. 7, but postponed because Condit said he had the flu. Negotiations to end the lawsuit heated up quickly, even as attorneys were preparing for more questioning of Condit and Dunne.

"Once the judge ruled that the deposition testimony from Dunne wouldn't be gagged, and that Condit could be asked questions about his past, this is what logically followed," Dalglish said.

Bee Washington Bureau reporter Michael Doyle can be reached at 202-383-0006, or mdoyle@mcclatchydc.com.

[blondie]

Strangest thing happened. I saw and read another article from the Modesto Bee today and then it was taken off their website.

It said that Lin Wood is the one who initiated the settlement about 11:30 on Sat by sending an email to LiCalsi saying the "time was ripe" for a settlement. It is so strange that it disappeared after that, I mean within 5 minutes after I had read it.

[blondie]

I figured out what happened. It was from 3-16-05 and they were updating their website for 3-17-05

www.modbee.com/local/story/10137844p-10959535c.html

[benn]

Good show, blondie. Condit did not look like he was going to talk no matter what Lin Wood said.

I was trying to post a message on the ModBee forum, but for some reason I don't get through. It tells me my password is wrong. It let me change my password, but then it still told me my password was wrong. I am just wondering if they block some people out of the forum.

benn

[rd]

I'll bet you that's when Lin Wood found out that Condit was going to be a no show Monday. And like I say, given that I believe he was a no show, the amount of money involved is miniscule.

Dunne and LiCalsi would have at least had their day for pressuring Condit with questions he had to answer before offering money to make him go away.

He has to be there to go away.

rd

[rd]

A behind the scenes look at the Condit settlement from Michael Doyle.

rd


from www.modbee.com (fair use)

Condit, Dunne sidestep big battle
Settling defamation lawsuit spares ex-congressman, author a public showdown
By MICHAEL DOYLE
BEE WASHINGTON BUREAU
Last Updated: March 16, 2005

WASHINGTON — The questions confronting Gary Condit were going to be tough, intimate and persistent. The answers: potentially embarrassing and probably newsworthy.

But about 12:30 a.m. Monday, Condit short-circuited two days of depositions by agreeing to settle his $11 million defamation lawsuit against author Domi-nick Dunne. Condit received an apology and an undisclosed sum of money.

Dunne's allies suggest this was no coincidence. Fox News Channel camera crews were staking out the federal courthouse in New York City early Monday in anticipation of Condit's appearance. His past statements to investigators were being lined up for comparison.

At the least, the deposition scheduled to start Monday was tabloid fodder in the making.

"I think the timing was crucial," Dunne attorney Paul LiCalsi said Tuesday. "We never engaged in any meaningful settlement discussions until this last weekend."

Nor were the tough questions going to be limited to Condit. In an aggressive and previously undisclosed move, Dunne's attorneys last week also had subpoenaed Condit's former attorney, Abbe Lowell. Lowell had been present at one of Condit's crucial interviews with the FBI agents investigating the disappearance of the late intern Chandra Levy of Modesto.

Nonetheless, Condit's current attorney said Tuesday that the former congressman from Ceres was fully prepared to endure the questions and inevitable fallout.

Condit lost his re-election bid in 2002 after spending more than 16 years in Congress. He and his family now own an ice cream business in Glendale, Ariz.

"Mr. Condit was in New York ready to be deposed," attorney L. Lin Wood said Tuesday. "He had no concerns whatsoever about testifying and fully intended to answer any and all relevant questions.

"He was fully aware of the nature and substance of the anticipated questioning, and was confident his case would only become stronger after his deposition," Wood added.

Condit sued Dunne in 2002

The questioning would have been part of the discovery process kicked off when Condit filed his defamation suit against Dunne in December 2002. Condit claimed Dunne irreparably harmed his reputation by spreading salacious scenarios about Condit and Levy.

A former graduate student and Bureau of Prisons intern, Levy was last seen alive in Washington on April 30, 2001. Her remains were found a year later in Rock Creek Park, and police have never identified a suspect in her death.

Condit has not denied published reports that he told police he was sexually involved with Levy. The depositions scheduled for this week, though, were going to press him on the relationship. A federal magistrate judge was going to oversee the questioning, and the answers were going to be stacked up against Condit's prior assertions, including those in his initial deposition in September.

"It wasn't a romantic relationship," Condit testified then.

Wood initiated the end-game with a Saturday night e-mail to LiCalsi suggesting that the time was ripe for settlement, according to one attorney. The two sides continued their negotiations by phone and e-mail Sunday, even as they prepared for the next day's scheduled deposition.

"I find that in almost every civil case there are certain time periods that lend themselves to providing excellent opportunities for the parties to discuss settlement," Wood said. "Among others, those time periods include before or after depositions."

Building a case

Many boxes of documents already had been collected by attorneys seeking to know more of the relationship between Condit and Levy. In a previously undisclosed move, attorneys also traveled to California to collect testimony from several people familiar with Condit.

Dunne's attorneys were scheduled to depose Levy's aunt Linda Zamsky on Friday, and were preparing to question two women who have said publicly they had affairs with Condit. The attorneys were planning to question Lowell in April about what Condit told FBI agents in the summer of 2001, and then compare that with what Condit has said at other times. The standard attorney-client privilege wouldn't have applied, because of the presence of government investigators.

Author faced grilling

Dunne himself was going to face several hours of additional questioning this week.

"Any defense spin that the timing suggests a desire by Mr. Condit to end discovery is just that — spin," Wood said. "I could just as easily suggest that Mr. Dunne settled because he wanted to end discovery."

A survivor of the Battle of the Bulge in World War II, Dunne, 79, conceded in his latest diary entry in this month's Vanity Fair magazine that the litigation has taken a toll.

"Being involved in a lawsuit is a lousy way to spend your old age," Dunne acknowledged, adding that "(Wood) did make me squirm during my deposition. He has a prodigious talent for intimidation."

In Dunne's first deposition in September, he conceded having been "hoodwinked" by one of his sources. He also acknowledged uncertainty about other sources for his public statements.

"I don't know," Dunne testified about one newspaper report he had echoed, "but I think it's true."

During his past public appearances, Dunne had floated specific, if thinly sourced, scenarios concerning Levy, one including motorcycle gangs and one including Middle Eastern embassy sex rings. He also contended Condit was hiding the full truth.

As part of Monday's settlement, Dunne issued a statement that he "did not say or intend to imply that Mr. Condit was complicit in her disappearance." Condit, in turn, said he accepted Dunne's apology.

"I think Mr. Condit's litigation demonstrates that even a public official can seek redress for damage to his or her reputation, and that there is no carte blanche to accuse or attack public officials," Wood said.

Bee Washington Bureau reporter Michael Doyle can be reached at 202-383-0006, or mdoyle@mcclatchydc.com.

[rd]

There 's a lot to discuss here. Wood said Condit was there, and I believe Chad was in NYC and appeared live on Geraldo at Fox News studios, but in my opinion Condit wasn't in NYC talking to Wood in person. Not with the timing of these emails from Wood, Saturday night initiation and Sunday night after midnight settlement.

I think that implies that LiCalsi and Dunne held out from a "go away" figure and called their bluff. By midnight it would be clear to even Wood that Condit wasn't going to show up and testify.

Thus an apology only and maybe a token amount of money for Wood's efforts, far less than $100,000 in my opinion. Otherwise, the judge would have thrown the case out anyway the next day when Condiit didn't show up again.

This is quite startling news. LiCalsi was going to start questioning the key figures in this case like a grand jury never did and should. Now a real grand jury has to pick up and continue.

rd

[benn]

Hello, rd. >>>"I think Mr. Condit's litigation demonstrates that even a public official can seek redress for damage to his or her reputation, and that there is no carte blanche to accuse or attack public officials," Wood said.

Bee Washington Bureau reporter Michael Doyle can be reached at 202-383-0006, or mdoyle@mcclatchydc.com.<<<

Lin Wood attempts to silence everyone else but wants to go on talking himself.

I sent Mike Doyle an email, against my better judgement. I quoted that sentence above.

Also the ModBee has no Chandra Levy topic on its forums. I could not log in for some reason and create one because the server kept saying my password was wrong or that my account had not been used recently. I was able to change passwords, but the server would not let me log in.

I deleted my account, to get rid of any garbage that might have kept me from logging in. I will register again in a few days, maybe under a different name.

The playing field has to be kept level, one way or another, even if it means tipping the field a little. :)

benn

[peripeteia]