Updated with new information from Tiller attorney Dan Monnat.

   The big mystery in a Wichita courtroom this week was the whereabouts of Linda Carter. She’s the former lover of former Kansas Attorney General Paul Morrison.

   Carter is easy enough to find.

Yet press reports repeatedly said that attorneys for Wichita abortion doctor George Tiller were unable to t find Carter, with whom Morrison carried on an extramarital affair while Johnson County district attorney and, later, AG.

   She’s also the woman who, Tiller’s lawyers say,  pressured Morrison to bring charges against their client for violations of Kansas abortion law. 

  This is according to a statement Carter gave in a sexual harassment complaint. She worked for Morrison when he was Johnson County DA, but go elsewhere for all the sordid details.

      What struck me were  repeated assertions in the press that Tiller's attorneys were unable to  find Carter. 

    Supposedly, Carter is needed to verify her earlier statements. Without that testimony, those statements can’t be introduced as evidence. Assistant AG Barry Disney says.

   In an earlier post I questioned how hard the team had tried to locate Carter. After all, I reached her with little trouble on Wednesday afternoon in Western Grove, Ark., her current home.

   Since then, Tiller's attorney Dan Monnat has emailed me his clarification of the AP reports stating that his firm was unable to find Carter.

   Instead, he blames the prosecutor for giving that impression.

   From Monnat's email:

  I do agree that the prosecutor, Mr. Disney, may havespeculated that the defense couldn't locate Carter in attempting to justifyhis blocking our access to witnesses who could provide us with Carter'ssworn statement to investigator Tom Williams.

 We are trying to do our bestto present, in a responsible way, the truth about Phill Kline's illegalinvestigation and targeting of Dr. Tiller.  I hope you understand that, aswith any case, there may be a variety of professional reasons and protectiveorders of the court that prevent me from responding completely to questionsof the media regarding what witnesses we will be able to present when andwhy.

 I appreciate your interest in the case.

    

   By the way, here's all Carter had to say when I reached her Wednesday afternoon:

    “I don’t think I have anything to say to them,” she said, meaning Tiller’s attorneys. “And I don’t have anything to say to the press. That’s our policy.”

Mike Hendricks