CBS Evening News open - 1977-10-31

Channel: malgent

Transcript

Language: English (original, YouTube automatic captions)

[0:01] This is the CBS Evening News with Roger

[0:05] Mud substituting for Walter Kronite who

[0:07] is in Europe this week.

[0:10] >> Good evening. The former director of the

[0:12] CIA, Richard Helms, and the Carter

[0:14] administration struck a deal today on

[0:16] whether Helms had lied to the Senate.

[0:19] And the deal was handled with such

[0:20] secrecy it would have put the CIA itself

[0:22] to shame. Fred Graham reports.

[0:26] Helm's legal troubles grew out of his

[0:27] testimony before the Senate Foreign

[0:29] Relations Committee in 1973 when as CIA

[0:32] director he swore that the CIA had

[0:34] neither tried to overthrow the

[0:35] government of Chile's Marxist President

[0:37] Salvador Alende nor had given money to

[0:40] Aliendai's political opponents. Later

[0:42] CIA documents were found that showed

[0:44] that neither statement was true. For

[0:46] months, the Justice Department and grand

[0:47] juries investigated possible perjury

[0:49] charges, but Helm's attorneys and

[0:51] influential supporters countered with a

[0:53] two-prong defense. There were hints that

[0:56] if Helms were brought to trial, secrets

[0:58] might come out that would harm the

[0:59] national security and number

[1:04] arguing it would harm the CIA to bring

[1:06] its former leader to trial. Well, one

[1:09] might draw that inference uh at least

[1:12] that that was one of the factors that on

[1:15] which the discretion was exercised.

[1:18] But uh I'll have to say I can't talk too

[1:22] much about it now. The uh the court

[1:24] would not like that.

[1:26] >> Today, Helms and his lawyer, Edward

[1:27] Bennett Williams, emerged without

[1:29] warning from the federal courthouse in

[1:30] Washington and sped away. Only then did

[1:33] the Justice Department disclose that

[1:35] Helms had been permitted to plead no

[1:37] contest to two misdemeanor charges of

[1:39] failing to testify fully to the

[1:41] committee. Helms could be given two

[1:44] years in prison and a $2,000 fine, but

[1:46] the Justice Department said it made a

[1:48] plea bargain with him to avoid the

[1:50] security risk of bringing him to trial

[1:52] and recommended no prison sentence by

[1:54] the Justice Department. The judge will

[1:56] announce his sentence later. Senate

[1:58] Foreign Relations Committee Chairman

[2:00] Frank Church said, "I thought there was

[2:02] to be an end to the double standard of

[2:04] justice for the big shots. Apparently,

[2:06] he said Helms was too hot to handle."

[2:09] Fred Graham, CBS News, Washington.

[2:12] >> The last public official charged under

[2:14] that particular statute, former Attorney

[2:16] General Richard Klein, was given a

[2:18] suspended sentence, 30 days, and $100.

[2:26] I really enjoy my family because I don't

[2:29] neglect myself. We try to enjoy life.

[2:32] I've never been happier. To be good at

[2:35] anything, you got to be good to

[2:37] yourself. So, I eat right, exercise, and

[2:40] to make sure I get enough iron and

[2:42] vitamins, I take geratl.

[2:44] >> Geratl, more than twice the iron of any

[2:46] ordinary supplement, and some very

[2:48] important vitamins. Take a look at

[2:51] people who take geratl.

[2:53] Gerl everyday

[2:57] Pontiac's new Firebirds are here with

[3:00] Firebird a spree and all its luxury.