THE SPY STORY THAT CAME INTO COURT

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP75-00001R000400190060-8
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: November 17, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 28, 2000
• Sequence Number: 60
• Publication Date: May 1, 1966
• Content Type: NSPR

Front Edit Othot
Pogo Pasio Pago
NEVI YA iipr& d For Release 2000/08/26 : CIA-RDP75-00001 R00040019aQ Q&~
TALES
M. 603,574
S. 1.283.785
MAY 1 1966
The Law'
The Spy Story That
Came Into Court
By FRED P. GRAHAM
Special to The New York Times
WASHINGTON, April 30-In
the popular novel and film, "The His reason: Mr. 'Raus has "ab-,
Spy Who Came in From the solute Immunity" from suit because
Cold," a British agent rigs a trial' his slanderous statements were'-
in. an Iron Curtain country to made his capacity as an agent of
frame and eliminate an important;: the C.I.A., pursuant to his Su.:'
enemy official, No moral is drawn per?iors' orders to discredit Mr.
from this, and despite the fact Heine as "a dispatched Soviet ?in_.}
that the court appears to be earn- telligence operative, a K. G, B.
estly trying to do justice, there is?agent." The C.I.A.'!; stated purpose','
no suggestion of outrage at the for spreading this story was "to
result. 'protect the integr'ty of the agen
This week, however, when the foreign' intelllgenc?r sources" with
Central Intelligence Agency threw in the Estonian community.
legal mo i The C.I.A. lnvo%ed two con. i
a tt xa a trial troversial 1959 Sal reme Court de-':
Baltimore's Federal District t Court,
the implications struck closer to cisions, in .w$ich a sharply divided
home. I court had expands 1 the, sweep of
For the. first time in anyone's stitutionV gives Congressmen vab
memory, an admitted American
lntelligencq agent appeared ag a.: solute immunity for any speech or`(,
witness in an American court of legislative action done in session,,'
law. The result was so unsatis- and the high court had previously ?
extended the same immunity to
factory that it raised fundamental
questions as to whether the es- , iudical officers and cabinet-rank '
pionage activites of the Govern- , officials of the executive branch.
i lnent can be reconciled with our But in the two 1959 cases, the
system of justice, - Supreme Court stretched the. priv.
liege further, to excuse an acting
Slander Sult director of the office ' of Rent
The incident began in 1963, when Stabilization and a Navy captain
Kurt Raus of Washington, an Es- who was commanding officer of
tonlan emigr6 leader, began pub- the Boston Navy Shipyard.
licly to label another expatriate! But even these fears were based
Estonian as a Soviet agent. This' upon an assumption that the Gov.
man, Eerik Heine of Toronto, ernment would always _ act with
claiming he wished to vindicate his i `. honorable motives and a sense of
position as an anti-communist, fair play. They reckoned without
hero, filed a $100,000 suit against the C.IA,'s special claim to oper-_:y
for slander. ate outside the conventional rules.
The suit appeared to be. a petty, On Thursday, when Mr. Rau is was backed by an affidavit from
squabble between two member of appeared before Judge Thomsen In C.I.A. director W. F. Raborn, who
the Estonian community until 10 Baltimore, these, contradictions also said Mr. Raiis's testimonyr
days ago, when it was discovered turned the proceedings Into a might compromise U. S. 'intelli-1
that Richard. Helms, deputy di-; fiasco. genes secrets. His lawyers added
rector of the Central Intelligence' Su Both sides have said they will
Agency, had quietly submitted of-' of attoimeys thatlnci five-Man a ' to e . appeal if they lose so the Supreme'
fidavits to Federal District Judge ; R.. Houston, the o tt eds. gwren
eneral Court may have an opportunity,
Roszel C. Thomsen, asking that counsel, Mr. Raus maintained his to re-examine its - governmental imm the case against Mr. Raus be dls refusal to answer questions.. He unity doctrine In the light of 1
missed.' sold war morality,
Approved For Release 2000/08/26 : CIA-RDP75-00001 R000400190060-8.