Judge Dismisses 7 Charges Against Ex-Official Watt
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WASHINGTON — A federal judge Monday dismissed seven charges of lying by former Interior Secretary James G. Watt, but upheld the remaining 18 charges involving his lobbying activities at the Department of Housing and Urban Development after leaving office.
U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth threw out the seven counts alleging that Watt made false statements in congressional testimony and personally or through his lawyer in response to a federal grand jury subpoena for his records.
But the judge refused to dismiss the remaining counts alleging that Watt committed perjury, unlawful concealment and obstruction of justice concerning his activities as a housing consultant in the mid-1980s.
Watt, one of the most controversial members of President Ronald Reagan’s Cabinet, is due to go on trial Jan 8. The case was brought by an independent prosecutor.
In dismissing the seven charges, Lamberth cited a Supreme Court ruling earlier this year limiting the scope of a law on false statements just to executive branch agencies.
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