Former Army Scientist Sues New York Times, Columnist

W Post ^ | 7/14/04 | Jerry Markon

[swilhelm73]

The former Army scientist identified by authorities as a "person of interest" in the 2001 anthrax attacks sued the New York Times Co. and columnist Nicholas D. Kristof yesterday, claiming the paper defamed him in a series of columns that identified him as the likely culprit.

The lawsuit, filed by Steven J. Hatfill in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, said Kristof identified him as the anthrax killer to "light a fire" under investigators in their probe of the anthrax-spore mailings, which killed five people and sickened 17. He accused Kristof of hurling "false and defamatory" allegations and the Times of engaging in "substandard and unethical journalism.''

In a series of columns in 2002, Kristof criticized the FBI for failing to aggressively pursue a scientist he at first identified as "Mr. Z.'' He wrote that the biodefense community had called Mr. Z a "likely culprit" and was "buzzing about Mr. Z behind his back," in part because the scientist was familiar with anthrax and was angered at the suspension of his top security clearance less than a month before the attacks.

Kristof, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, later acknowledged that Mr. Z was Hatfill. He also wrote that Hatfill deserved the "presumption of innocence" and that "there is not a shred of traditional physical evidence linking him to the attacks.''

[Drammach]

Hatfill will eventually get some sort of payoff from the feds.. without their admitting any guilt, of course..

As for the press, they are pretty well protected..
If they fall before the judicial axe, the feds don't stand a snowflake's chance in H**l..