Bush Says He ‘Wanted to See North Exonerated’

President Bush, breaking his public silence on the Oliver L. North verdict, said Tuesday that he had “wanted all along to see him exonerated,” but Bush did not suggest that he may consider a pardon for the convicted former White House aide.

“The process is being appealed,” the President added. “He’s entitled to the right of appeal without a lot of editorial comment from me.”

Bush’s comments, made in an off-hand manner at the conclusion of an interview with a group of reporters in the Oval Office, referred to North’s conviction Thursday on three felony charges in the Iran-Contra scandal.

Bush, during the Republican presidential primary campaign in April, 1988, expressed hopes that North and retired Adm. John M. Poindexter, a former national security adviser, would be acquitted of criminal charges stemming from the affair.

“My hope--my own personal hope is they are found innocent of any wrongdoing,” Bush told reporters during a stop in New York. “The American system, after all, is innocent until proved guilty.”

North, a retired Marine lieutenant colonel who had been a top staff official on former President Ronald Reagan’s National Security Council, was found guilty of altering and destroying top-secret documents, aiding and abetting deception of Congress and illegally accepting the gift of a $13,800 home security system. He is scheduled to be sentenced June 23, when he faces a possible maximum punishment of 10 years in prison and potential fines of $750,000.

Jurors cleared North of nine other felony counts, principally that he had submitted untruthful letters to Congress on three occasions in 1985 and 1986 and had lied to congressmen in a face-to-face meeting at the White House about his secret efforts to support Nicaragua’s rebels. At the time, Congress had prohibited direct and indirect U.S. military aid to the rebel forces.

Although Bush declined comment on the verdict last week, he said Tuesday when the subject was raised, “as you know, I wanted all along to see him exonerated.”

Referring to North’s statement that he will appeal the verdict, the President added: “The matter is now under appeal, and thus I’ll have nothing more to say about it while it is. . . . I’m not going to argue with the courts.”

As the interview broke up, the President also was asked, “You don’t believe in shredding documents, do you?”

“I believe in taking them with me,” he replied with a grin.

In previous references to the Iran-Contra case, Bush had repeatedly called North a hero, referring to North’s combat duty in Vietnam for which he was awarded a Silver Star and other medals. Reagan earlier had said that he did not consider the two men “guilty of any law-breaking or any crime.”

Poindexter is scheduled to stand trial this fall for alleged theft, conspiracy and obstruction of Congress.