Bulger Prosecutor: Media Leaks "Grave Concern"

Media leaks in the case against alleged crime boss James "Whitey" Bulger are a grave concern to its top prosecutor, according to a court affidavit.

U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz has requested several agencies conduct internal reviews to determine if anyone spoke with the press shortly after Bulger and his girlfriend Catherine Greig were capured June 22 after 16 years on the lam.

Following a Boston Sunday Globe article that attributed information to unidentified law enforcement, Ortiz met with agents from the FBI, DEA, U.S. Marshalls and state police Tuesday, she wrote in the affidavit that was unsealed Thursday afternoon.

“During this meeting I noted my grave concern regarding information being reported in the media about recent developments in this investigation," Ortiz wrote.

Ortiz called for each of the agencies to assess whether anyone on their staff spoke to the press, she wrote, and has contacted U.S. Attorney for Central California Andre Birotte regarding the issue.

The affidavit was filed per request from Judge Mark Wolf, who called for prosecutors to explain their plans to seal up leaks after Bulger's attorney demanded the leaks to the press stop.

The only agency authorized coordinate contact with the press from this point on is her office, Ortiz wrote.

Earlier this week, Peter Krupp, then Bulger's interim attorney, filed a motion demanding media leaks stop. In the motion, Krupp question whether it is impossible for Bulger to get a fair trial.

"The jury pool has surely been tainted by the flood of publicity about this case over the last 25 years," Krupp wrote. "If it is now possible -- and Mr. Bulger seriously questions whether it will be possible -- for Mr. Bulger to receive a fair trial, law enforcement leaks of non-public information must end."