U.S.

Execution Possible For Accused Spy

By CBSNews.com staff CBSNews.com staff

March 5, 2001 / 6:40 AM EST / CBS

Attorney General John Ashcroft said Tuesday he will consider seeking the death penalty for Robert Hanssen, a former FBI agent accused of passing some of the nation's most sensitive secrets to Moscow.

"The laws provide for, in some cases, the death penalty, and I would not hesitate to include the death penalty among the options that are to be considered, based on making sure that we pursue the national interest at the highest level," he told Reuters in an interview.

Hanssen, whose job was supposed to have been catching Russian spies, was arrested by FBI agents Feb. 18 on charges of selling secrets to Moscow over the last 15 years of his 25-year FBI career for $1.4 million in money and diamonds.

If convicted of espionage, he could face the death sentence. His lawyer has said Hanssen planned to plead not guilty.

As attorney general, Ashcroft would have to authorize seeking the death penalty in the Hanssen case, just like he must approve it in any federal case.

Ashcroft, who was named attorney general by President Bush, said he had experience with death penalty cases when he was the Republican governor of Missouri.

"I take the death penalty seriously because I think that it is, obviously, the ultimate sanction," he said.

Under U.S. law, prosecutors may seek the death penalty if the jury finds that a spy disclosed information that caused a foreign power to execute an individual who was acting as a U.S. agent.

An alleged spy could also face the death penalty if the secrets disclosed concerned nuclear weapons, communications intelligence or other major weapons systems or a major element of defense strategy.

Hanssen has been accused of confirming the identity of two KGB officials who were spying for the United States. They were first compromised by convicted CIA spy Aldrich Ames, and were tried, convicted for espionage and executed, the FBI has said.

Asked whether the Justice Department would be willing to pursue a possible plea bargain with Hanssen, Ashcroft said it would have to serve the "best interest" of the United States.

He emphasized that any plea bargain would have to take into account various considerations, including "severe punishment for people who betray the national interests of the country."

In many espionage cases, the Justice Department has reached a plea bargain in which the accused spy admits guilt, gets a long prison sentence and agrees to cooperate in saying what information has been compromised, and the Justice Department avoids a trial in which secret information might be divulged.

Ashcroft later elaborated at a Justice Department news conference about what would go into any decision to seek the death penalty.

"There is a national interest in making sure that we send a signal that we take very seriously any compromises of … national security," he said.

"But we would also take very seriously the need or opportunity to ascertain things important for us to know about the nature of what had happened that might be available to us in the context of a plea bargain," Ashcroft said.

A Justice Department spokeswoman said she was unaware of any difference between Bush administration officials, who reportedly want the death penalty for Hanssen, and the federal prosecutor in Virginia, who reportedly wants a life sentence.

In the interview, Ashcroft declined comment on whether there have been any discussions with Hanssen's lawyers about a possible plea deal. Hanssen's lawyer, Plato Cacheris, could not be reached for comment.