Stephen Jin-Woo Kim is a former State Department contractor who pleaded guilty to a felony count of disclosing classified information to Fox News reporter James Rosen.[1][2] Prosecutors charged that Kim's actions indirectly alerted North Korea to what U.S. intelligence officials "knew or did not know about its military capabilities and preparedness."[3]
The government alleges that Kim's conversation with Rosen contained information related to the "national defense"[11][12] (793(d) does not use the word "classified"). The alleged false statements to the FBI occurred in September 2009,[7] regarding whether or not Kim had any contact with Rosen (whom he allegedly met around March 2009).[13]
Kim initially pleaded not guilty.[7] Rosen and Fox were not named in the indictment (which listed them as a "reporter" and a "news organization"), but news reports identified the parties.[9][12]
Kim was defended by prominent attorneys Abbe Lowell of Chadbourne & Parke and Paul M. Thompson and James M. Commons of McDermott Will & Emery.[10] One of Lowell's arguments was that Bob Woodward's book Obama's Wars contains far more sensitive information than the information Kim is accused of leaking, which created a double standard in leak prosecution.[9] Lowell also said that the DOJ is "stretch[ing] the espionage laws" and having a chilling effect on government officials communicating with the press. He also said that Kim would never do anything "for which he had any reason to believe would harm [US interests]."[12][14]
Guilty plea
On February 7, 2014, Kim entered a guilty plea to a single felony count of disclosing classified national defense information to an unauthorized person, Rosen. His lawyer, Lowell, admitted that his client "made a decision to cross a line" and that he "should have known better." Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Harvey added that Kim "was motivated not by an altruistic purpose but by his own ego and desire for professional advancement." Before sentencing, US District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly said Kim "did lose his moral compass."[3] Kim was sentenced to a 13-month prison term.[1]