Death of American Virtue - Ken Gormley [350]
Cacheris and Stein took long sips of coffee. They dabbed their mouths and sat back, nodding slowly. They could be persuaded to recommend this proposal to their client, they allowed.
Documents contained in the defense lawyers’ files, released with permission of their client, now reveal that Cacheris and Stein recognized that—however unfair this full-blown criminal investigation of their client was—Lewinsky was at serious risk if her lawyers did not broker a swift deal. One memo prepared solely for the eyes of her lawyers concluded that two federal statutes relating to “obstruction of justice” provided ample grounds to charge and prosecute Lewinsky. One of these provisions, set forth in Section 1503 of the crimes code, permitted conviction of any person who “corruptly endeavors” to hinder the administration of justice—a broad umbrella. A related provision dealt with “witness tampering” and allowed a defendant to be prosecuted even for “non-threatening persuasion and advising” of potential witnesses. The fact that Monica had signed a false affidavit and coaxed Linda Tripp to do the same was a big problem. Even though it seemed unfair to apply these rules to a twenty-four-year-old love-struck young woman, the lawyers understood that their client could get jail time for her actions.
Plato Cacheris later confirmed, “Her exposure was the affidavit… and possible obstruction of justice with Tripp.”
Another memo in the files of Lewinsky’s attorneys, marked in bold letters STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL, emphasized that the magic window to cut a deal might be ajar only fleetingly: “This may be the time, rather than to jump on OIC while they have their problems, to resume a negotiation. ML must agree and must understand that she is experimenting with a way out that has its perils for her. The perils include an indictment for grand jury perjury and there may be few defenses to such a charge.”
Surveying the Dashes’ flower garden, which was bathed in sunlight that seemed auspicious, the group moved to the next logical step: Where would OIC conduct such a “conversation” with Monica Lewinsky? Was there an out-of-the-way place where the media would never sniff them out? Starr piped up that he knew a perfect location—his mother-in-law’s apartment on East Fifty-sixth Street in New York, otherwise known as “Grandma’s house.” It was a cozy spot, Starr said, beaming. The media would never suspect this locale in Manhattan as the venue for a high-level meeting to resolve the biggest criminal investigation in America. Cacheris and Stein shrugged their shoulders: Why not? “Grandma’s house” seemed as good as any. The bald-headed Dash chuckled, noting that they could dub the mission Red Riding Hood, a joke that produced polite twitters around the table.
The defense lawyers asked, “When do you want to do it?” Starr replied, “Like, now.”
As the opposing lawyers strode to their cars under the shade trees of Newlands Street, departing this leafy section of Chevy Chase, there was a mixture of victory and apprehension in the warm summer air. Back at the office, Plato Cacheris telephoned Monica, who had just turned twenty-five on that day, July 23. Cacheris told his client, allowing her to savor, finally, something resembling good news, “I’ve got a birthday present for you.”
THE meeting at “Grandma’s house” in New York City was a moment of truth for all concerned. Monica Lewinsky’s lawyers had debriefed their client extensively, using a female attorney in the office to conduct interviews when it came to “personal” details. Plato Cacheris stated with a grimace: “We didn’t want to get into all the