[longtermmemmory]

The prosecutor's letter sought a guilty plea.

A guilty plea is equal to a confession.

A confession is probative to the criminal investigation.

It is confidential. Settlement negotiations in general should be deemed probative to the investigation and thus confidential.

To state otherwise is absurd.

[Sarah]

'That's my last flog of this horse. If there isn't case law out there already on this, there will be. I don't see that there is a possiblity for the orderly administration of justice if plea negotiations, which we all violently agree are not evidence, are allowed to become evidence in the court of public opinion before the negotiations have even concluded. Heck, why not let the Enquirer put someone in each SAO's office to sit in on the negotiations otherwise.'

The molding of public opinion, even if it was done by a officer and without the SA's knowledge, is enough to throw out the whole case?
ie: does the whole point become the leaks? What happens to the original investigation, and pending charges?