[JURIST] The US Department of Justice is considering a request from the Central Intelligence Agency [official website] to open a criminal investigation into the leak of possibly classified information on the existence of secret CIA detention centers for suspected terrorists [JURIST report] to the Washington Post. There have also been calls for a congressional investigation [JURIST report] into the leaked information. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) and House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL) sent a letter Tuesday to the Senate and House intelligence committees stating that "such an egregious disclosure could have long-term and far-reaching damaging and dangerous consequences, and will imperil our efforts to protect the American people and our homeland from terrorist attacks." In an interview Tuesday, Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Pat Roberts (R-KS) [official website] did not dispute a suggestion that a Congressional probe would raise First Amendment press-freedom issues. AP has more.

Previously in JURIST's Paper Chase…

• Frist, Hastert call for investigation into leak of CIA secret prison information
• EU to investigate reports of secret CIA prisons in Europe
• CIA reportedly holding al Qaeda terror suspects in covert prison system