Reply #19: One Judge Tatel decision, against BushCo.

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In Re: Grand Jury Subpoena, Judith Miller, 397 F.3d 964 (D.C. Cir. 2005): While investigating the Valerie Plame affairPlame affair
Matthew Cooper is a former reporter for Time who, along with New York Times reporter Judith Miller was held in contempt of court and threatened with imprisonment for refusing to testify before the Grand Jury regarding the Valerie Plame CIA leak investigation...
regarding their communications with Scooter Libby. Refusing to testify before the grand jury, Miller spent ninety days in jail for civil contempt. The D.C. Circuit unanimously upheld the contempt decision. Judge Tatel concurred, suggesting that there is a federal common law, qualified journalist privilege, but that it was not met in this case because the grand jury’s need for the journalists’ testimony outweighed the burden of disclosure on newsgathering.