Reno May Reconsider Wenatchee Case

Fri., May 29, 1998

Hearst Newspapers

Attorney General Janet Reno expressed doubt on Thursday that the Justice Department has authority to investigate alleged civil rights violations by local law enforcement officials in Wenatchee, when they prosecuted child sex-abuse cases.

“What we have indicated in the past with respect to Wenatchee is that we do not have general supervisory jurisdiction over state court proceedings,” Reno told her weekly press conference here.

But she did not rule out the possibility that the Justice Department would investigate the cases.

In 1996, Reno responded to a request by then-Gov. Mike Lowry to order a federal investigation into the so-called Wenatchee sex ring cases. After making a preliminary inquiry, Reno rejected Lowry’s request.

But last March 5, following a five-part investigative report in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Reno said she might reconsider.

“If there’s any new information that would be available in those articles, we’ll certainly take a look at it,” Reno said then.

Earlier this week, a group that included CBS’ “60 Minutes” host Mike Wallace and playwright Arthur Miller of “The Crucible” fame called on Reno to investigate the Wenatchee cases.

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