A reporter who was with Fox News when she reported on information provided by a confidential source is facing a contempt charge because she's refusing to reveal the source's identity despite a court order that she do so.
The Epoch Times reports Catherine Herridge, now a reporter for CBS News, was ordered in August to disclose the identity and motive of the source, who provided information about an FBI investigation into a Chinese scientist.
But Ms. Herridge, during a deposition after the order was handed down, "refused to answer questions regarding the identity of her confidential source(s) and other aspects of her reporting process and editorial decision-making," lawyers for Yanping Chen, the scientist, said in a recent filing.
They asked the court to hold Ms. Herridge in contempt, a criminal charge that can bring jail time.
U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper, who gave the order, said on Oct. 27 that Ms. Herridge would likely be held in contempt unless she provided the information.
"With contempt proceedings now teed up, one of two outcomes appears likely: either Herridge will be held in contempt in the near future and can immediately appeal that order, or, as sometimes occurs in these cases, the sources may release Herridge from the privilege rather than watch her undergo the consequences of contempt," Judge Cooper, appointed under President Barack Obama, wrote in a ruling.
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