European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - May 15, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 10 the stars and stripes May columns comments William Safire Huffon plea bargain with Justice thwarts Justice at a luncheon last Robert the hard charging chairman and chief executive officer of Hutton went up to attorney general Wil Liam French he wanted to discuss the investigation that had been going on for Over three years into the massive Check kiting operation run by buttons Cash management this High level approach has troubled some professionals within the Justice de along with 15 democratic sen they believe it was wrong to allow the Well connected company to cop a guilty plea without prosecuting any of the individual when asked about this officials at Justice gulp and confirm what they consider an improper attempt to influence the the attorney general Felt says Stephen chief of the criminal he was nobody will say exactly How Smith re ported the Fomon Contact to his colleagues at Justice but the pressure was noticed and in Light of the subsequent Deci Sion to let the company off with a Finger wagging and is the subject of concern according to Robert the Crimi Nal division Deputy who recommended the Case be settled without individual indict the approach was a serious breach of the eminent criminal attorney hired by Hutton for its Wil Liam later apologized for his clients which he May have known about beforehand and recommended that is the specific basis for the feeling inside Justice that the disposition of the Case might have been Overly and Flora Lewis that a gang of White Collar Crooks has been allowed to go in the Crimi Nal Trott As a a member of a singing group called the Highway who made famous Row the boat and a career vigorously dispute in sisting that their plea bargain helped save americas banking but the Brief Cento a Chat surely should have sensitized Justice to the appearance of especially if a Deal was in work that relieved Hutton executives of criminal and took the heat off the 50 Button men from involving their evidently no such sensitizing took John for was vice chair Man of Hutton when the fraudulent backroom dealings began in and the firms profits were inflated by interest in effect stolen from hundreds of he was named chairman of the securities and Exchange commission by Reagan eight months after the crimes investigators spoke to and say his company responsibilities were not in the Cash management area but the fact that a former top official of an admittedly guilt Ridden firm is now at the head of Wall streets watchdog Agency should surely have caused Justice to examine him at length under oath before a grand Scott for another is now president of Hutton and was As signed to oversee retail branches in hut tons hot summer of when the extent of the Federal and local investigations be came known when the corporate officers were shaken and when buttons George left to take Over at As Many Wall Streeter Are Well when Hutton ims of the advice of his attorney is vice president George Bush that is not in itself a state of if pierces Boss was will ing to take the Case directly to the attorney it seems possible to me that the same Boss might suggest that Pierce talk to his sister barbaras it happens that Pierce did not the vice responding promptly to my avers he never discussed the Hutton Case with any body at the company or in the govern the Justice never saw fit to make this obvious in even after the Fomon approach to one dismaying reason that Justice puts Forward for not rowing that boat ashore is that nobody in the criminal division until last that the president of their target company was brother inlaw to the vice president of the United the questions did Hutton use any of its connections in getting off without prosecutions after three the sudden Rush to Settle As soon As Smith departed these Bear a close look by but assuming no one Point is Plain letting so Many White Collar lawbreakers go free was a colossal mis new York times Syndicate the Gorbachev should be a real hit in new York from the talk of Mik Hail and Raisa Gorbachev Are going to give president and the great masters of some racy Competition if they arrive As expected in new York in the in word has filtered through from Moscow that the soviet Leader has a hankering to include a visit to the Reagan ranch at Santa Barba which would turn the informal sum Mit into a Gran tour Gorbachev showed in his be Day speech in Moscow that he can be As Tough and aggressive As any of his Kremlin predecessors when it comes to denouncing the West and blaming it for All of the worlds present and past including hitlers but he and his wife also showed during their week in London last year that they Are susceptible to Western luxury and regardless of the Call for More austerity and discipline at Home in the soviet three anecdotes widely repeated in London among High officials and some people with Access to prime minister Margaret thatchers office make the they Haven been directly con so they cant be offered As assured but they do give the flavor still lingering after the Gorbachev a enough people were in a Posi Tion to know the if not to acknowledge them to give the stories More weight than Idle the visit was in before Gorbachev became the top Leader in doubtless after he was sure of How a freeze works the one item on the program was a pilgrimage to the cemetery in Highgate where Karl Marx is the Gorbachev did not it was a blustery the word is that Gorbachev told their escorts to Deposit the obligatory Wreath because she was determined to see something else Crown jewels in the Tower of toward the end of the after Thatcher had left for a visit to they suddenly ordered their motorcade to Stop at the blocked Entrance to Downing Gorbachev said he wanted to see the prime ministers residence once he got out of the car and tried to argue his Way past the at first the guards sarcastically refused to believe who he but they accepted the the Gorbachev were Given another private look around the House to examine the the Best Story starts at the for Mal dinner that Thatcher gave for her soviet guests Early in the Gorbachev admired the Diamond and Sapphire earrings that the prime minister was impatient with that kind of Small Thatcher accepted the compliment but Gorbachev insisted on knowing where they were the prime minister called Over her who had bought the jewels As an anniversary gift some years and asked him to Tell Gorba Chev the name of the it was couple of Days later the director of Cartier called Downing Street in some Gorbachev and her cohorts were there demanding to see a pair of the same they were still in but he wanted to know if the prime minister would have any objection to showing them in the surprising Circum she Gorbachev bought the earrings and paid with an american credit efforts to Check the Story Drew a at first Cartier was but after a number of people the store said it had reviewed its charge slips and found no record of a Purchase by Raisa Gorba the press office at Downing Street denied even hearing of the i dont even know if the prime minister wore earrings the night of the a spokesman discretion was to be exit Hast stopped continuing chuckles in London upper social the incidents dont Tell anything about Gorbachev policies and the positions he is Likely to take in a meeting with Rea but they do give some clues to his personality and to his supreme self conf Dence despite a minimum of Contact with the Thatcher has said she was charmed by instead of sticking rigidly to Reading prepared papers during their official talks in the usual Kremlin Gorbachev spoke to her from Brief notes and responded to this is a new kind of Kremlin neither wooden like the three of recent nor impetuously earthy like Nikita he is certainly but out of the he can Deal with Western despite the profound Dif Ference in ideas and it will take some adjustment by once he appears on the to recognize that looking and acting familiar Doest mean thinking on the same c 1985 new York times Syndicate