Her Practice Dash Wakes Up the Camera Crew : North Verdict? No, It’s Only CBS’ Rita Braver

Network TV crews awaiting a jury verdict in the Oliver L. North trial got a scare today when CBS reporter Rita Braver raced outside the federal courthouse on a dash to the camera.

The jury in the case was deliberating for a sixth day with no indication that its review of the charges against North was drawing to a close.

But many of the more than three dozen reporters packing the fourth-floor press room and a nearby witness room didn’t know that Braver was using the lull to make a practice run.

Before dashing downstairs, she had warned some of her colleagues that she would be running to her spot before the cameras--but the crews ringing the huge courthouse were not told.

“Verdict! Verdict!” photographers yelled into walkie-talkies as they spotted Braver racing out of the courthouse. But when they realized Braver was on a test run, crew members returned to dining from makeshift buffets and making themselves comfortable in lawn chairs.

North, 45, a former staff member of the National Security Council, is charged with 12 felony counts including lying to Congress, destroying official documents, accepting an illegal gift and tax fraud. If convicted, he faces up to 60 years in prison and $3 million in fines.