North and Panels Reported Near Accord on Testimony

Lt. Col. Oliver L. North and Congress’ Iran- contra investigators Monday appeared close to breaking the deadlock that has threatened to delay or prevent the testimony of the central figure in the scandal, committee sources said.

Under the outlines of a tentative deal, sources said, the investigators would limit the amount and scope of private testimony from the former White House aide before he appears in public. This would work to the disadvantage of the investigators, who had hoped to use extensive private testimony to prepare themselves for North’s public appearance.

On the other hand, sources said, the possible agreement may mean that North would testify before the panels hear publicly from his former boss, John M. Poindexter, who had served as President Reagan’s national security adviser. This would help assure the House and Senate committees, which already have talked to Poindexter privately, that North’s account would not be influenced by Poindexter’s version of events.

North, a former National Security Council aide and a central figure in the scandal, previously had been scheduled to give public testimony in mid-July. The agreement may bring him to the hearings as early as July 7, sources said.

Rep. Lee H. Hamilton (D-Ind.), chairman of the House investigating committee, told reporters that the congressional panels had “made a lot of progress” in their talks with North’s attorney, Brendan V. Sullivan Jr. He declined to disclose any details of the arrangement but noted that while “not all questions are resolved, things are moving forward.”

North last week informed the panels that he would refuse to appear before key staff members in private, as other witnesses have before testifying publicly. Lawyers for North, who has been granted immunity from prosecution based on his testimony, complained that the grant of immunity would not cover what he said in private.

When committee members continued to insist on a preliminary closed session, they raised the possibility of citing North for contempt of Congress--a drawn-out legal process that could have delayed North’s testimony for months and, in practical terms, prevented it entirely. North could face an indefinite jail term if found guilty of contempt.

Leaders of the House and Senate committees plan to present the proposal to other members today. The Iran-contra hearings are also scheduled to resume today after nearly a two-week break.

“Nothing has been resolved finally and will not be until the committees put their stamp of approval on it,” Hamilton cautioned.

Tentative Support

However, the arrangement appeared to be drawing at least tentative support from committee members. Many Republicans long have urged that the panels do whatever is necessary to obtain North’s testimony. Democrats also appeared inclined to support the plan.

“I would accept what the chairman is trying to work out here,” said Rep. Louis Stokes (D-Ohio), chairman of the House Intelligence Committee and a member of the select panel investigating the controversy.

Sullivan met for about 1 1/2 hours early Monday with key leaders of both the House and Senate committees. A Senate committee spokesman said the lawmakers had warned Sullivan that they “would not enter into any agreement with individuals that restricts congressional prerogatives.” Sullivan could not be reached for comment.

But while they were concerned about setting dangerous precedents, committee members also consider North’s testimony to be the most crucial that will be presented in the hearings, which began last month and are expected to stretch through the summer.

Earlier witnesses have indicated that North was the White House official most closely involved in the day-to-day operation of a possibly illegal private network supplying military aid to Nicaragua’s rebels when official U.S. aid was banned. North also helped manage the secret sale of U.S. arms to Iran, which generated profits that were diverted to the contras.

North was fired last November after an internal White House investigation discovered a memorandum in his safe giving the first clear indication that money from the Iran arms sales had been funneled to the contras. Poindexter resigned the same day.

Deadline Extended

As the panels worked on the proposal to get North’s testimony, they extended by one day--to Wednesday--the deadline on a subpoena for North to appear and produce a wide range of documents. Those include the personal notes that North kept in small spiral notebooks, described in testimony two weeks ago by his former secretary, Fawn Hall. Hall said she believed she last saw those notebooks in the office of North’s attorney, Sullivan.

Before North and the committees reach a final agreement, the lawmakers may need to weigh the reaction of independent counsel Lawrence E. Walsh, who is investigating the Iran-contra scandal for criminal wrongdoing.

The committees earlier had agreed with Walsh not to order North’s public testimony before mid-July, to give Walsh time to build a criminal case against him. Public testimony will effectively halt Walsh’s investigation of North because the special prosecutor would find it difficult to prove that new evidence was not based on North’s congressional testimony.

A spokesman for Walsh said he had no comment on the proposed agreement.