Word: subpoena
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...spawned at least 18 new accusers and Senate charges of sexual misconduct. Then his attempt to discredit those charges by producing portions of his personal diaries unwittingly bred suspicions of other misdeeds: political-favor peddling. His campaign to reseal the diaries gave rise to an overwhelming Senate vote to subpoena the writings. Finally, just as Packwood was coming to the conclusion that he would have to resign, he discovered he had flailed too long. Administration sources say the Justice Department has impaneled a grand jury to begin a criminal investigation into possible ethics violations...
...resign any minute, having hammered out a deal with Senate Republican leaders to exchange his resignation for assurances that no further legal action would be taken against him. By Friday evening there were new reports: Packwood had shelved that plan after he was served with a subpoena on his way to the Senate floor at the behest of the Justice Department's public-integrity section. A Justice official said the subpoena "may have inadvertently knocked things off track," but denied that the department had acted with any intention of thwarting a deal between Packwood and his Senate colleagues...
Both waves of rumors were tripped off by a report in the Portland Oregonian that pointed to the specific entry in Packwood's diaries potentially linking him to criminal violations. The account stated that the ethics committee had decided to subpoena the diaries after spotting a reference to questions raised by Packwood during a November 1989 finance subcommittee probe into trade barriers erected by Japanese companies. A transcript of the hearing, which the Oregonian says is now under review by the Senate legal counsel, shows that Packwood's questions had the effect of defending Mitsubishi Electric against an attack...
Packwood vows to serve out his fifth term and fight the subpoena for his diaries. Although the federal court is expected to move quickly on the Senate's request, if Packwood is not satisfied with the outcome, he threatens an appeal that "could take years." If he runs out the appeals process and still refuses to comply, Packwood could face civil contempt penalties. Meanwhile, he creates an opportunity for the committee to delve further into the possibility of criminal misconduct. Packwood's unfortunate pattern is that each attempt he makes to preserve his privacy seems to turn up the wattage...
...vote, Senators supported the ethics committee's effort to subpoena 8,400 pages of diaries as part of a sexual-misconduct investigation of Bob Packwood, the Oregon Republican. The five-term Senator refused to hand over the diaries, however, and the battle will now move into the federal courts. Democrat Robert Byrd of West Virginia savaged Packwood in a speech on the Senate floor and called on him to resign...