Democrats May Block Bid to Give Immunity in Probe

Senate Democrats signaled Wednesday that they might block efforts today to grant limited immunity to as many as 19 witnesses--including some of the donors at the Hsi Lai Temple in Hacienda Heights, Calif.--who agree to cooperate with investigators probing campaign-finance abuses.

“There are so many unanswered questions, I don’t really expect Democrats are going to be in a position to be very helpful” in supporting Republicans on the immunity issue, Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) told reporters Wednesday.

Additionally, aides indicated that the Justice Department has expressed concerns about the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee’s plans to extend immunity to so many people, described as relatively low-level players with important knowledge of improper activities.

Laura Ingersoll, who heads the Justice Department’s fund-raising task force, would not comment on any disagreements between prosecutors and Hill investigators. But other sources said that her lawyers are studying what impact immunity for the 19 would have on potential prosecutions.

Granting immunity in exchange for testimony greatly complicates any subsequent criminal cases against the witnesses, making it a critical decision in any congressional inquiry. No evidence based on their testimony under a grant of immunity could be used against them. If the Senate does approve immunity, Atty. Gen. Janet Reno could request a 20-day delay to give prosecutors additional time to gather evidence, officials said.

Although the list of proposed witnesses was not released Wednesday, sources said that they include some of those at the Buddhist temple where Vice President Al Gore attended a controversial fund-raiser last year and others who are suspected of giving political donations with money that may not have been their own.

One proposed recipient of immunity is Keshi Zhan, a friend of Democratic fund-raiser Yah Lin “Charlie” Trie. A single mother who earns an annual salary of $22,408 as a municipal employee in Arlington, Va., Zhan gave $12,500 to the Democratic National Committee.

Zhan has denied that Trie supplied the donation, insisting that it was her own money. But her testimony under oath might provide important information about Trie, a former Little Rock, Ark., restaurant owner who has left the country for Asia and indicated that he would not cooperate with investigators.

Committee rules require approval from at least 11 of the panel’s 16 members to issue immunity grants. The panel’s nine Republicans, led by Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson, would have to win the support of at least two of the committee’s seven Democrats.

Democrats, however, have been furious at Thompson for failing to issue more subpoenas aimed at uncovering Republican fund-raising abuses. Sen. John Glenn of Ohio, the panel’s ranking Democrat, met privately with Thompson Wednesday in an effort to strike a deal before today’s committee meeting.

“There are some pretty big-league legal questions when you discuss immunity,” said one Democratic aide. “When you factor in all the other issues hanging over this investigation, everything becomes even more complicated.”

Times staff writer Robert L. Jackson contributed to this story.