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McDougal criminal contempt trial rescheduled for FebruaryBy Terry Frieden/CNNWASHINGTON (November 16) -- No matter the outcome of her embezzlement trial nearing its conclusion in Los Angeles, Whitewater figure Susan McDougal will have a three-month break before facing her next trial in Little Rock, Arkansas. At the request of McDougal's attorney, U.S. District Court Judge George Howard, Jr. in Little Rock has re-scheduled her criminal contempt trial for February 16. McDougal's trial had been set for November 30. Howard's staff is preparing for a trial lasting up to three weeks. McDougal faces two counts of criminal contempt and one count of obstruction of justice for refusing to answer questions from prosecutors for Independent Counsel Ken Starr and from grand jurors. McDougal has insisted her steadfast refusal to cooperate stems from her belief Starr wants her to lie about then-Gov. Bill Clinton's role in business dealings in Arkansas in the 1980s. Howard, who also presided over McDougal's 1996 Whitewater trial, ordered her released from prison in June for health reasons. She had served four months of a two-year sentence for her fraud conviction in the celebrated Whitewater trial. McDougal had previously spent 18 months behind bars after Judge Susan Webber Wright found McDougal in civil contempt for refusing to testify before the grand jury. McDougal is on trial in Los Angeles where she is accused of embezzling about $50,000 from conductor Zubin Mehta and his wife Nancy when she worked as their bookkeeper. McDougal's attorney Mark Geragos delivered closing arguments Monday as the trial moved into its 11th week. The case is expected to go to the jury as early as Tuesday. |
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MORE STORIES:Monday, November 16, 1998
• The last mystery: Monica Lewinsky's voice • McDougal criminal contempt trial rescheduled for February • Judiciary Democrats plan to play hardball with Starr • Justice drops most misconduct allegations against Starr • Poll: More Americans disapprove of Congress • Poll: Hussein the winner in past year's confrontations • Gephardt, Bonior retain Democratic leadership posts • Supreme Court declines to hear campaign funding case • Lewinsky reportedly signs book and TV deals • Audit finds theft by IRS workers • Nicholson warns of party 'bloodbath' if he is challenged • Gore supporter pleads innocent, Kanchanalak case retooled • NYC Mayor Giuliani keeps 2000 bid alive • Last survivor of four in JFK limo disagrees with Warren Commission • New Congress from many walks of life | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
