Justice Dept. Restricts Subpoenas For Reporters and Phone Records; Subpoenas Dislosed in September Disagreement Within Department
Date: 13 November 1980
By ROBERT PEAR Special to The New York Times
Robert Special
US Justice Dept issues new regulations defining procedures that must be followed before Govt attempts to subpoena news reporters or their telephone toll records; new regulations bar issuance of subpoenas to reporters without express authorization of Atty Gen; authorize US Atty or Asst Atty Gen to issue subpoena if reporter voluntarily agrees to provide materials sought by Govt; are issued following disclosure that telephone company turned over toll records of Raines to Justice Dept and, at dept's request, waited 90 days before informing Raines or Times; subpoenas were apparently designed to learn source of articles written by Raines which stated that FBI informer within Ku Klux Klan participated in violent attacks on blacks and civil rights activists in early '60s; dept official Victor H Kramer comments (M)