US: Sacked CIA analyst Mary McCarthy says she did not leak classified information about secret prisons in eastern Europe to Washington Post journalist Dana Priest. Ms McCarthy's lawyer, Ty Cobb, said the CIA accepted his client was not the source for the reports but Ms McCarthy had admitted having undisclosed contacts with Ms Priest and other journalists.
Ms McCarthy (61) was sacked last week - 10 days before she was due to retire - after she failed part of a lie detector test during a CIA investigation into the leak.
Mr Cobb said Ms McCarthy "did not have access to the information she is accused of leaking" and that "she categorically denies leaking classified information". The Washington Post reported yesterday that the CIA does not believe Ms McCarthy played a central role in leaking the story.
Mr Cobb said Ms McCarthy was devastated that her long government career will "forever be linked with misinformation about the reasons for her termination" and that her reputation as a public servant has been ruined.
In a statement last Friday, the CIA said it had fired one of its officers for having "knowingly and willingly shared classified intelligence" during unauthorized conversations with journalists. Officials later identified Ms McCarthy and said that Ms Priest was one of the journalists with whom she shared information.
The agency also made it clear that the sacking was part of an investigation into the prisons leak and did not seek to correct reports that Ms McCarthy had been identified as the source of the leak.
Republicans in Congress have called for the prosecution of officials who leak classified information but Ms McCarthy is unlikely to face charges because evidence obtained through a lie detector is inadmissible in court. Journalists are unlikely to testify about confidential sources, making it difficult to prove that Ms McCarthy had in fact passed on classified information.
Mr Cobb said he did not expect the government to press charges against his client. "There is no legitimate reason to proceed with prosecution here," he said.
Conservative commentators have focused on the fact that Ms McCarthy, who was a national security adviser in the Clinton administration, gave $2,000 (€1,600) to John Kerry's 2004 presidential campaign and suggested she was deliberately trying to sabotage President Bush.
Right-wing talk show host Rush Limbaugh said Ms McCarthy was part of a "culture of treason" in the CIA and other government agencies.
"The CIA is infested. If you think Mary McCarthy is the lone wolf over there, you have a lot to learn. If you think that there are not a bunch of Mary McCarthys at the state department, and over at the Pentagon, you have a lot to learn about what's going on . . . This is a den of thick thieves here, folks, and they're all over this administration, and they're all over this government, and they are wreaking havoc as often as they can," he said.
Mr Cobb said that Ms McCarthy, who qualified as a lawyer last year, hopes to find a way to clear up the allegations and move on to a new chapter in her life.
"Her hope is to be able to pursue her planned retirement from two decades of distinguished public service to do community service law," he said.