Vice President Dick Cheney may be ordered to answer questions about a 2006 encounter he had with a citizen at a Beaver Creek mall.
Steven Howards, who was arrested for assaulting Cheney after voicing his objection to the Iraq Wars to Cheney, asked U.S. Magistrate Judge Craig B. Shaffer on Tuesday to order Cheney to undergo a deposition about the exchange.
Howards, who contends he merely patted Cheney’s arm when he made the anti-war statement, is suing the Secret Service agents who arrested him, claiming they violated his civil rights.
A criminal charge of harassment against Howards was dropped by Eagle County prosecutors.
Shaffer did not rule on Howards’ motion, but hinted he was leaning toward allowing the deposition because the Vice President was a direct witness.
James Gilligan, an attorney for the Vice President, argued that deposing Cheney would distract from his official duties and that there were other witnesses who could testify instead.
He also argued that allowing a Vice President to be deposed in this case may open the door for other high-ranking government officials to be forced to testify.
Shaffer said that Cheney is “uniquely positioned relative to the events in question” and the judge seemed to dismiss the argument that Cheney didn’t have time to leave his official duties for a deposition.
“You’re telling me a two-hour deposition would distract the Vice President?” Shaffer asked Gilligan.
Shaffer also said that a deposition could be conducted privately with a court reporter reading a series of questions to Cheney and that a spectacle could be avoided.
But Howards’ attorney, David Lane, said he wants the opportunity to cross-examine Cheney because he wants to ask if it’s possible that the Secret Service agents changed their stories about the encounter under pressure from the Vice President.
A court reporter sitting alone with a list of questions for Cheney would prevent Lane from getting complete answers, he said.
In videotaped depositions taken last year, U.S. Secret Service agents who witnessed Howards and Cheney’s encounter gave conflicting accounts of what occurred, Lane said.
Some witnesses testified Howards assaulted Cheney after he made his statement about Iraq, while others say there was no assault.
“They are accusing one another under oath of filing false reports,” Lane said.
Also on Tuesday, Shaffer declined to release the videotaped depositions of the agents and White House employees for security and privacy reasons.
Lawyers for the agents and White House photographer and Cheney’s aide argued that they may be subjected to ridicule and embarrassment if the tapes of the depositions were “sliced and diced” onto YouTube.
Lane said he plans to appeal Shaffer’s ruling to U.S. District Judge Wiley Y. Daniel because Lane believes the public has a right to see the tapes.
Felisa Cardona: 303-954-1219 or fcardona@denverpost.com
