ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — A former CIA officer accused of leaking the names of covert operatives to journalists is expected to enter a guilty plea.
A change of plea hearing has been scheduled Tuesday in federal court in Alexandria for John Kiriakou (keer-ee-AH-koo). Kiriakou had initially pleaded not guilty to the charges that he disclosed the names of two covert CIA operatives.
The change of plea comes shortly after Kiriakou lost a key pre-trial ruling.
A judge last week ruled that prosecutors would not have to prove that Kiriakou actually intended to harm the U.S. by allegedly leaking the identities.
Instead, they would only have to show that Kiriakou had "reason to believe" that the information could be used to injure the U.S.
Prosecutors declined comment Monday on the apparent plea deal.
