Delay Indictment May Come Tomorrow & Lynddie England Gets 3 Years in Todays Details #2 for 9/27/05

- A Texas grand jury's recent interest in conspiracy charges could lead to last-minute criminal indictments _ possibly against House Majority Leader Tom DeLay _ as it wraps up its investigation Wednesday into DeLay's state political organization, according to lawyers with knowledge of the case.

- The term of the Travis County grand jury ends Wednesday. Although the investigation into felony charges of illegal corporate spending during the 2002 election theoretically could continue through October, a last-minute burst of activity by prosecutors had defense lawyers speculating — in some cases fearing — the prospect of more indictments by Wednesday.

Also see Americablog.blogspot.com

- Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist's recent stock sale threatens to cost him and fellow Republicans politically as he mulls a 2008 presidential bid and investigators examine whether he violated any trading laws, political analysts said. "Frist's White House campaign hasn't really taken off, and this adds weight to an idling plane," said Larry Sabato, a political science professor at the University of Virginia. "He may prove to be totally innocent, but this is a negative -- a big distraction -- for his presidential ambitions and management of the Senate," said Ethan Siegal of the Washington Exchange, a firm that tracks politics and legislation on Capitol Hill for institutional investors.

- New Orleans Police Superintendent Eddie Compass resigned Tuesday after four turbulent weeks in which the police force was wracked by desertions and disorganization in Hurricane Katrina's aftermath.

- Army Pfc. Lynndie England, who said she was only trying to please her soldier boyfriend when she took part in detainee abuse at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison, was sentenced late Tuesday to three years behind bars.