Mike Espy
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Former Agriculture Secretary Mike Espy was indicted on charges he accepted more than $35,000 in gifts and favors by court-appointed independent counsel Donald Smaltz (Aug. 28). The probe took almost three years and is reported to have cost almost $9 million! No private firm could afford nor accept such a poor return on both time and money.
This is a waste of taxpayers’ money and the courts should be directed to place both time and money limits on all current and future independent counsel investigations. I would expect courts to use the same common sense that industry uses and to evaluate the effectiveness of these probes.
RICHARD HERST
Redondo Beach
* Who is the real criminal, Espy for taking $35,000 and going to a football game, or Smaltz for charging the taxpayers $9 million for uncovering such dastardly deeds?
BARBARA CORN
Woodland Hills
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