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| Jailed Writer to Be Freed |
| By ABCNEWS.com |
| Published: 01/07/2002 |
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A writer jailed more than five months ago for refusing to hand over notes she took while doing research on a high-society murder case will be released from prison on Friday. Vanessa Leggett has been in prison since July 20 when she refused to hand over her notes to a federal grand jury investigating the slaying of the wife of a reputed bookie. Federal prosecutors asked her to give up all her notes, tapes and material - originals and copies - related to the 1997 death of Doris Angleton. In a closed hearing before U.S. District Judge Melinda Harmon, Leggett, 33, was found in contempt of court. Leggett's attorney, Mike DeGeurin, told ABCNEWS today that Harmon will free Leggett in sealed court order as the grand jury investigating the Angleton case ends its term. She is expected to leave prison Friday morning. Federal prosecutors will still have the option of charging Leggett with contempt of court. Leggett will be eligible for bail, which prosecutors could also oppose. Her previous bids for freedom failed as the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Louisiana refused to review her case, and her lawyers appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday. Leggett argued that handing over her notes would have broken a confidentiality promise she made to those she interviewed for an unpublished book over a four-year period. Back in July, she said she was trying to protect her rights as a journalist and the public's right to a free press. 'I am not a martyr, and I want to see justice done, but I am doing what I must to protect the public's interest in a free press,' Leggett said. Leggett's involvement in the Angleton case began after Texas state prosecutors focused their investigation on the victim's husband, Robert Angleton, and his brother, Roger. Both were charged with capital murder, as state prosecutors believed Robert hired Roger to kill his wife to prevent her from collecting millions in a divorce settlement. Roger committed suicide before he could go to trial and left behind a note that claimed he killed his sister-in-law and was framing Robert to extort money from him. Leggett interviewed Roger in prison before his suicide. She was subpoenaed and handed over copies of her notes and taped interview with Roger to a state grand jury only after reaching an agreement in which investigators promised to give the materials back to her, DeGeurin said. According to DeGeurin, that information only verified public information that was revealed in Roger Angleton's suicide note. Leggett's notes were never admitted at Robert Angleton's 1998 state trial, and she was never asked to testify. Robert Angelton was ultimately acquitted of capital murder. DeGeurin said, prosecutors made copies of Leggett's materials and handed them over to federal officials, ultimately leading to the writer's subpoena in federal court after federal prosecutors decided to bring their own case against Angelton, and wanted more information from the writer. |
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