What happens when the fox gets to "reveal" why the henhouse is empty ... Lawsuit Could Reopen Watergate By SETH HETTENA .c The Associated Press BALTIMORE (AP) - The Watergate burglary was not an attempt to remove potentially embarrassing photographs of John Dean's future wife from a secretary's desk, despite the claims of convicted conspirator G. Gordon Liddy, the secretary's lawyer said Wednesday in opening statements for a defamation lawsuit. The lawsuit was filed by Ida ``Maxie'' Wells, the former secretary for the Democratic National Committee. It seeks $5.1 million from Liddy for claiming that the burglars who broke into DNC headquarters at the Watergate complex were looking for photographs that linked Dean's fiance to a call-girl ring. Wells says Liddy falsely accused her of procuring prostitutes for the DNC in the early 1970s. Her attorney, David Dorsen, said Wednesday that Liddy defamed Wells by repeating the theory about the Watergate break-in that was raised in the book ``Silent Coup.'' Liddy began discussing Wells in speeches after Dean sued Liddy and the authors of that 1991 book over its claim that Dean instigated the Watergate break-in. In June, the lawsuit was dismissed. Dean, who was President Nixon's chief White House lawyer, said he would testify and deny the accusations. Dean's wife, Maureen, also is listed as a possible witness for Wells. Other potential witnesses listed by both sides include Watergate figures E. Howard Hunt, Charles Colson and James McCord. Liddy's attorney, John Williams, countered in his opening remarks that Liddy has several sources for his theory about the motive behind the break-in, including a number of books and what Williams said was a historical fact: that one of the burglars had a key to Wells' desk. ``He says what he says because the historical literature will show that Ms. Wells' telephone was being used to contact the call-girl ring,'' Williams said. ``This case is about whether Mr. Liddy can openly discuss another theory of history. ``Nobody can explain why the burglars had a key to her desk and why her desk was broken into.'' Liddy arranged the June 17, 1972, burglary that ultimately led to Nixon's 1974 resignation, and later served four years and four months in prison. The lawsuit contends Liddy has repeatedly, and falsely, claimed the break-in was ordered not to repair a previously installed tap on DNC telephones but to recover photos and phone numbers of Dean's fiancee. According to the lawsuit, Liddy says Dean's fiancee was a member of a call-girl ring. Dean, who cooperated with Watergate prosecutors and served four months in prison, on Tuesday denied being the Watergate mastermind. ``There is not a scintilla of evidence that there was a call-girl ring at the DNC,'' said Dean, who has recently worked as an investment banker in Beverly Hills. Dorsen has noted that Wells later became personal secretary to Carter. ``It defies belief that if there were an active prostitution ring operating out of the DNC in 1971-1972, in which (Wells) played a conspicuous role, no Democratic worker or official came forward to protect President Carter from the political scandal of having as his secretary an alleged former madam, who supposedly pimped for countless Democratic bigwigs,'' Dorsen said in court papers.
