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WASHINGTON - A former top aide to Vice President Dick Cheney was sentenced today to 30 months in prison for lying and obstructing a probe related to the Bush administration's handling of the Iraq war.
US District Judge Reggie Walton imposed the stiff sentence on Lewis "Scooter" Libby for lying to investigators trying to determine who leaked the identity of CIA analyst Valerie Plame in 2003.
Walton also imposed a fine of $250,000 ($333,500) and two years probation.
Libby, the former chief of staff to Cheney, made a final appeal. "It is respectfully my hope that the court will consider along with the jury verdict my whole life."
Walton, however, said while Libby's government service was admirable, it made his crime especially serious.
"It's important that we expect and demand a lot from people who put themselves in those positions," Walton said. "Mr. Libby failed to meet that bar. For whatever reason, he got off course."
Libby's charges grew out of a high-profile investigation into the leak of Plame's identity after her husband emerged as an early critic of the invasion of Iraq.
Plame, who has testified that the unmasking destroyed her career, offered no immediate comment. Vice President Cheney's office also was quiet, as was the White House.
Nobody was charged with blowing Plame's cover, but Libby was found guilty of obstruction of justice, making false statements to the FBI and two counts of perjury. He was found not guilty of one charge of making false statements.
Libby was one of several Bush administration officials who discussed Plame with reporters at a time when her employment status was classified.
Plame's husband, Joseph Wilson, had accused the Bush administration of manipulating intelligence to build its case for the Iraq war.
Libby remained free pending a hearing set for next week on his plans to appeal.
- REUTERS
