Thursday, Aug. 17, 2006 6:54 p.m. EDT
O’Reilly Accuses Limbaugh Prosecutor of Cover-up

The prosecutor who vigorously pursued the case against conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh has been accused of going easy on a wealthy Democrat accused of sex crimes with kids.

Billionaire Palm Beach financier Jeffrey Epstein, 53, was indicted last month on a charge of felony solicitation of prostitution.

But Palm Beach County Police Chief Michael Reiter wanted Epstein to be charged with the more serious crime of sexual activity with minors.

Florida State Attorney Barry Krischer of Palm Beach County rejected that call – even though police believe Epstein regularly brought girls as young as 14 to his mansion for sex, and they reportedly found pictures of underage girls when they raided his home.

That’s the same Barry Krischer who aggressively went after Limbaugh for allegedly obtaining prescription drugs by doctor shopping.

Though the case was later found to be without merit, and even legitimate cases are typically not even prosecuted, Krischer’s office went on a witch hunt against Limbaugh that lasted several years and included an effort to obtain the popular talk-show hosts private medical records.

The Palm Beach prosecutor’s double standard was exposed this week by Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly, who slammed Krischer for engaging in a cover-up.

In his "Talking Points” this week, O’Reilly described Krischer as having acted with "malice” against Limbaugh. O’Reilly laid the blame on Krischer’s politics, describing him as a "a committed Democrat.”

O’Reilly added that "Chief Reiter believes Krischer is in the tank for Epstein,” a businessman who has donated more than $100,000 to Democratic candidates including Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Charles Schumer.

In fact, Reiter was so disturbed by Krischer’s handling of the case that he fired off a letter to Krischer, calling his actions "highly unusual.” He urged Krischer to disqualify himself from the prosecution of the case, according to The Palm Beach Post.

"Reiter even referred the case to the FBI to determine whether the super-rich, super-connected defendant had violated any federal laws,” the Post reported.

Already backers of Epstein have been smearing the reputation of the police chief and even bringing up details of a "messy” divorce with his wife.

But even the liberal Palm Beach Post reported that the chief has a sterling reputation. The paper reported that colleagues "almost uniformly use one word to describe the chief: professional.”

Reiter is not a newcomer to cases involving Palm Beach’s rich and famous.

He was the lead detective investigating the drug overdose death of David Kennedy in 1984. He also was involved in the probe of William Kennedy Smith, who was charged in 1991, and later acquitted, with raping a woman in Palm Beach.

O’Reilly concluded: "When you examine how much time and effort Krischer put into trying to ruin Rush Limbaugh as opposed to what he’s doing now in the far more serious case of Jeffrey Epstein, many, many questions come to mind and none of those questions reflect well on Barry Krischer.”

http://tinyurl.com/fq4kz

Isn't a bit strange to criticize this prosecutor for going after a guilty guy, while not going after an innocent guy? Not knowing the details of the case, it may have been more clear that Limbaugh was guilty and Epstein was innocent than this article makes it seem.

If this prosecutor fails to go on a witch hunt against a Democrat who is actually guilty, we may have a different story on our hands.

Limbaugh was innocent and the child molester was guilty. The point is he was using his office for political purposes instead of what he is appointed to do. Limbaugh is not the criminal. The child molester is. You should research the story to find the facts.

Ah yes, I understand. I misread the article.