[JURIST] US District Judge Reggie Walton has threatened to ban public statements about the case of former vice presidential adviser I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby [defense profile, JURIST news archive] after one of the prosecution's court filings was released to the media before it was officially filed. On Thursday, Walton issued an order in which he stated that he "would not tolerate this case being tried in the media" and gave attorneys until next Friday to provide written statements explaining why he should not issue an order restricting statements about the case.

In a related development, Libby's attorneys have requested classified White House documents [PDF brief] regarding former Under Secretary of State Marc Grossman, former White House spokesman Ari Fleischer and senior White House advisor Karl Rove [official profile], all of whom the government is likely to call as witnesses. Libby was indicted [PDF indictment, JURIST report] in October on charges of obstruction of justice and perjury in connection with the CIA leak case [JURIST news archive]. The New York Times has more.