Jones Case Is In Judges' Hands
Another federal courthouse was surrounded by the media Tuesday as Paula Jones tried to revive a dismissed sexual harassment lawsuit against President Clinton.
A few protesters showed up as the lawyers for both the president and Jones came to argue for and against reinstating the lawsuit, which was dismissed without merit last April, reports CBS News Correspondent Phil Jones.
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Outside the court, Robert Bennett, Mr. Clinton's lawyer, was asked why the president is willing to negotiate a financial settlement while still denying he did anything wrong.
"It is to get it behind us," said Bennett. "The American people want President Clinton to concentrate on the problems of this country, on the problems of this world."
Said Donovan Campbell, a lawyer for Jones, "I don't represent the American people. I represent Paula Jones. What Paula Jones wants is justice. You tell me: How long does justice take?"
Jones' attorney told the panel of judges that President Clinton created a hostile work environment for Jones after she refused his sexual advance, reports CBS News White House Correspondent Bill Plante.
But another Clinton attorney, Amy Sabrin, argued that Jones' own testimony negated her claim of a hostile environment or any other harm to her career as an Arkansas state clerk.
"There were no explicit threats of reprisal, and there were no reprisals," Sabrin said.
Mr. Clinton has denied the incident occurred and said he doesn't remember ever meeting Jones.
Now it is up to the three-judge panel to decide whether Jones' lawsuit should be reinstated. While the judges are deliberating, the lawyers say they will be dealing behind the scenes, trying to reach a settlement.
But a round of settlement talks that began several weeks ago have made clear that a deal is exceedingly complicated, largely because of competing interests within the Jones camp.
Those interests include Jones' Dallas-based lawyers, headed by Campbell; a husband-and-wife team of California advisers, Susan Carpenter-McMillan and Bill McMillan; and Jones' former attorneys, Joseph Cammarata and Gilbert Davis, who have instituted claims for $800,000 as compensation for thei work.