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Virginia Democrats have pulled the state police and a federal prosecutor into their eavesdropping lawsuit against the Republican Party.
Attorneys for a group of Democratic lawmakers have subpoenaed state police Superintendent Steven Flaherty and U.S. Attorney Paul McNulty to demand documents related to the eavesdropping investigation.
They also subpoenaed records from Attorney General Jerry Kilgore's office in an effort to find out more about his top aide's involvement in the case.
Kilgore and Flaherty have responded; McNulty's office has asked for more time to determine what documents it can provide, according to Ken Smurzynski, the Democrats' lead attorney. A McNulty spokesman declined comment.
The controversy began in 2002 when the Republican Party of Virginia's top staffer secretly listened to and taped a pair of Democratic conference calls.
McNulty and the state police led the criminal probe of the matter, securing guilty pleas from the chief eavesdropper and from three other players in the scandal.
More than 30 former and current Democratic legislators--including Del. Albert Pollard of White Stone--have filed suit against the RPV, arguing it bears responsibility for its former executive director, Edmund A. Matricardi III of Spotsylvania County, who eavesdropped on the Democratic teleconferences.
The suit seeks unspecified damages, but a U.S. District judge ruled last week that the plaintiffs can collect only $10,000 in statutory damages.
In addition to the RPV, the suit targets Matricardi, former RPV Chairman Gary Thomson, former House of Delegates Speaker S. Vance Wilkins Jr. and former Wilkins aide Claudia D. Tucker.
The Democrats have sent questionnaires to all five defendants seeking details of how and when they participated in or learned of the eavesdropping, and with whom they shared any contents of the teleconferences.
"I don't believe we know, at this point, with certainty, everyone who spoke to Mr. Matricardi or anyone else who had either intercepted a call or had the contents of those calls shared with him or her," Smurzynski said. "The purpose of this discovery is to determine who falls into that category, among other purposes."
Of particular interest to Smurzynski is the involvement of Kilgore's chief of staff, Anne P. Petera.
Matricardi testified in open court last year that after listening to the first teleconference, he twice called Petera. He said Petera encouraged his eavesdropping and wanted details of the Democrats' political discussions.
Petera denied those accusations, saying she talked to Matricardi only once, and that she immediately condemned his actions.
But Petera's state cell-phone records show two calls from Matricardi's phone shortly after the first teleconference.
The records also showed a 10-minute call from Petera's cell phone to Kilgore's cell phone shortly after she received a copy of Matricardi's notes of the first Democratic call.
Kilgore's office sent the case to the state police for investigation; and McNulty's office was eventually asked to take over the matter.
Petera has never been charged with a crime, and Kilgore has defended her actions.
But Smurzynski wants to know exactly what role Petera played in the affair.
"Part of the purpose of this discovery is to understand who knew what [and] when," Smurzynski said. "That includes Ms. Petera and others."
Lawyers for both sides in the suit will meet Tuesday in Richmond for a pre-trial conference, during which a trial date likely will be set.
To reach GEORGE WHITEHURST: 540/374-5438 gwhitehurst@freelancestar.com