Renzi challenges wiretaps

Indicted U.S. Rep. Rick Renzi (R-1) is seeking to have dozens of his cell phone conversations which were recorded by the FBI barred from admission at his trial. He filed separate motions yesterday in the U.S. District Court of Arizona arguing that many of the calls are either subject to attorney-client privilege or are protected under the Speech or Debate Clause of the Constitution.According to TheHill.com:

"In the filing, the legal team argued that many of the calls recorded during a 30-day period beginning Oct. 26, 2006 were between Renzi and his attorneys and are protected under attorney-client privilege laws.

The attorneys also said that they would later file a separate motion invoking Speech or Debate Clause Constitutional protections, which prevent executive branch intrusion on Congressional activity, over some of the recorded conversations."

The Speech or Debate Clause was intended to prevent statements made by legislators during debates in Congress from being used against them in criminal cases. It has recently been invoked by Rep. John Murtha (D-Penn.) in a libel suit that arose from comments he made on the House floor regarding the Haditha incident in Iraq, and by Rep. William Jefferson (D-La.) to bar evidence gathered during an FBI raid on his congressional office. 

The Justice Department notified members of Congress who were picked up on the phone tap, but so far only Arizona Rep. John Shadegg (R-3) has admitted to having received notification, and has claimed he isn't worried about anything that might have been picked up between him and Renzi.

On the same day, the Justice Department also requested certain elements of the House Ethics Committee's inquiry into the Renzi matter be suspended. According to a statement on the committee's website:

"...after cafeful deliberation, the Investigative Subcommittee has voted to refrain at this time from attempting to interview or depose witnesses linked to the criminal proceedings involving Representative Rick Renzi. The unanimous determination of the Investigative Subcommittee followed the receipt of a communication from the United States Department of Justice expressing concern that such investigative actions might create legal or factual issues that would complicate or impede the criminal prosecution and related law enforcement efforts in this matter."

This is precisely what occurred in the House Ethics Committee's probe into Rep. William Jefferson (D-La.), who was indicted in 2007 on bribery charges after FBI agents raided his home and found $90,000 cash in his freezer. In the Renzi case as in Jefferson's, and using nearly identical language, the Investigative Subcommittee has decided that, while its investigation will still technically continue, it will be limited to continuing to "monitor the criminal proceedings," and conduct only inquiries "it concludes do not interfere with the law enforcement efforts."