WASHINGTON, Oct 6: The chief investigator for House Republicans in the impeachment probe has outlined 15 possible charges against President Bill Clinton, four more counts than independent counsel Kenneth Starr made in his report to Congress last month.House judiciary committee counsel David Schippers split some of the other counts and added new ones involving conspiracy and aiding the filing of false affidavit. Schippers said there was ``substantial and credible evidence'' that the President may have done the following:
a. Conspired with Monica Lewinsky and others to obstruct justice and the due administration of justice.
This includes providing false and misleading testimony under oath in the Paula Jones deposition and before the grand jury; withholding evidence and causing evidence to be withheld and concealed and tampering with prospective witnesses.
b. Aided, abetted, counselled and procured Monica to file a false affidavit in the Paula Jones sexual harassment case.
c.Aided, abetted, counselled and procured Lewinsky to obstruct justice when she executed and caused to be filed the false affidavit, intending to influence, obstruct or impede the Jones case.
d. Engaged in misprision of Monica Lewinsky's felonies of submitting a false affidavit, by trying to conceal her felonies and by failing to disclose them though under a constitutional and statutory duty to do so. (Misprision can mean a deliberate misinterpretation, or a neglect of duty by a public official).
e. Testified falsely under oath in the Jones case on January 17, 1998.
f. Testified falsely under oath to the federal grand jury on August 17, 1998.
f. Gave false testimony under oath in the Jones case when he said he could not remember being alone with Lewinsky and by minimising their exchange of gifts.
g. Gave false testimony under oath in the Jones case about conversations with Lewinsky about her role in that case.
h. Endeavoured to obstruct justice through apattern of activity aimed at concealing evidence in the Jones case about his relationship with Lewinsky.
i. Endeavoured to obstruct justice in the Jones case by agreeing with Lewinsky on a cover story about their relationship, by causing her to file a false affidavit, and by giving false and misleading testimony.
j. Endeavoured to obstruct justice by helping Lewinsky get a job in New York when she was a potential damaging witness in the Jones case.
k. Testified falsely under oath in the Jones case concerning his conversations with his friend Vernon Jordan about Lewinsky.
l. Endeavoured to obstruct justice and engage in witness tampering in attempting to coach and influence testimony by his secretary Betty Currie.
m. Endeavoured to engage in witness tampering by coaching prospective witnesses and narrating elaborate detailed false accounts of his relationship with Lewinsky, so that witnesses would then repeat those accounts to the grand jury.
n. Gave falsetestimony under oath before the federal grand jury regarding his knowledge of Lewinsky's affidavit, and his knowledge of things his lawyers had said in his presence.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.