Editing Killing of Chandra Levy (section)

==Relationship with Condit==
[[File:GaryCondit.jpg|thumb|U.S. Representative [[Gary Condit]]]]
Controversy surrounding Levy's disappearance drew the attention of the American news media.<ref name="WP09-Frenzy">{{cite news|last=Horwitz|first=Sari|author2=Higham, Scott|author3=Moreno, Sylvia|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/metro/specials/chandra/ch9_1.html|title=Who Killed Chandra Levy?, Chapter Nine: Media Frenzy|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|pages=1–2|date=July 22, 2008|access-date=November 5, 2010|archive-date=November 26, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101126083449/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/metro/specials/chandra/ch9_1.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Condit, a married man who represented the [[congressional district]] in which the Levy family resided, at first denied that he had had an [[extramarital affair|affair]] with her. Although police stated that Condit was not a suspect, Levy's family said they felt Condit was being evasive and possibly hiding information about the matter.<ref name="WP09-Frenzy"/>

Unidentified police sources alleged that Condit had admitted to an affair with Levy during an interview with law enforcement officers on July 7, 2001.<ref name="CNN-20010707">{{cite news|last=Franken |first=Bob |url=http://archives.cnn.com/2001/US/07/07/condit.missing.intern/ |publisher=CNN |title=Police sources: Condit admits to affair with Levy |date=July 7, 2001 |access-date=November 5, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081211073456/http://archives.cnn.com/2001/US/07/07/condit.missing.intern/ |archive-date=December 11, 2008 }}</ref><ref name="CNN-20010710">{{cite news|url=http://articles.cnn.com/2001-07-10/justice/missing.intern_1_chandra-levy-anne-marie-smith-congressman-condit/ |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130119115537/http://articles.cnn.com/2001-07-10/justice/missing.intern_1_chandra-levy-anne-marie-smith-congressman-condit/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 19, 2013 |title=Police take up offer to search Condit's apartment |publisher=CNN |date=July 10, 2001 |access-date=November 25, 2010 }}</ref> Condit described her to police as a vegetarian who avoided drinking and smoking. He thought that Levy was going to return to Washington, D.C. after her graduation and was surprised to find out that the lease on her apartment had ended.<ref name="WP09-Frenzy"/> Investigators searched Condit's apartment on July 10. They questioned flight attendant Anne Marie Smith, who claimed that Condit told her she did not need to speak to the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] about his personal life.<ref name="ABC-20010710-search">{{cite news|last=Thomas|first=Pierre|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=121469|title=Police Search Condit Apartment|work=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]]|pages=1–3|date=July 10, 2010|access-date=November 25, 2010|archive-date=December 8, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141208103237/http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=121469|url-status=live}}</ref> Federal officials began investigating Condit for possible [[obstruction of justice]], as Smith was also involved in an affair with him. (She was not acquainted with Levy.)<ref name="ABC-20010710-obstruction">{{cite news|last=Thomas|first=Pierre|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=121468|title=Feds Explore Condit Obstruction Allegation|work=ABC News|pages=1–3|date=July 10, 2010|access-date=December 20, 2010|archive-date=December 8, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141208103241/http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=121468|url-status=live}}</ref> Upset by leaks to the media, Condit refused to submit to a [[polygraph]] test by the D.C. police; his attorney asserted that Condit passed a test administered by a privately hired examiner on July 13. He avoided answering direct questions during a televised interview on August 23, with news anchor [[Connie Chung]] on the [[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]] program ''[[Primetime (U.S. TV program)|Primetime Thursday]]''.<ref name="WP09-Frenzy"/> Intensive coverage continued until news of the [[September 11 attacks]] superseded the media's coverage of the Levy case.<ref name="WP10-Informant">{{cite news|last=Horwitz|first=Sari|author2=Higham, Scott|author3=Moreno, Sylvia|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/metro/specials/chandra/ch10_1.html|title=Who Killed Chandra Levy?, Chapter Ten: A Jailhouse Informant|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|pages=1–2|date=July 22, 2008|access-date=November 5, 2010|archive-date=November 26, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101126075059/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/metro/specials/chandra/ch10_1.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

In a nationwide Fox News/Opinion Dynamics poll of 900 registered voters conducted in July 2001, 44 percent of American respondents thought that Condit was involved in Levy's disappearance and 27 percent felt that he should resign. Fifty-one percent of the respondents believed that he was acting as if he were guilty; 13 percent felt that he should run again for office. A poll sample taken from Condit's congressional district held a more favorable view of Condit.<ref name="Fox-20010727">{{cite news|last=Blanton|first=Dana|title=FOX News/Opinion Dynamics Poll: Condit's Acting Guilty|publisher=Fox News Channel|url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/fox-news-opinion-dynamics-poll-condits-acting-guilty|date=July 27, 2001|access-date=November 28, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110207034339/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,30692,00.html|archive-date=February 7, 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> On March 5, 2002, Condit lost the Democratic primary election for his Congressional seat to his former aide, then-[[California State Assembly|Assemblyman]] [[Dennis Cardoza]],<ref name="NYTimes-20020305">{{cite news|last=Nieves|first=Evelyn|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/06/us/condit-loses-house-race-to-former-aide.html|title=Condit Loses House Race To Former Aide|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=March 6, 2002|access-date=November 25, 2010|archive-date=August 12, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140812210956/http://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/06/us/condit-loses-house-race-to-former-aide.html|url-status=live}}</ref> with the Levy controversy being cited as a contributing factor.<ref name="WP09-Frenzy"/> He was subpoenaed to appear on April 1, 2002, before a District of Columbia [[grand jury]] investigating the disappearance. The date was kept a carefully guarded secret to avoid further leaks.<ref name="WP-20020402-appointment">{{cite news|last=Lengel|first=Allan|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/18/AR2008061801703.html|title=Condit Had Appointment With Grand Jury|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=April 2, 2002|access-date=November 25, 2010|archive-date=November 11, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111162720/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/18/AR2008061801703.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Condit left Congress at the end of his term on January 3, 2003, after failing to win his re-election bid.<ref name="Reuters-20080709">{{cite news|url=http://in.reuters.com/article/idINN0828554520080708|title=Condit's slander suit over Chandra Levy dismissed|work=[[Reuters]]|date=July 9, 2008|access-date=November 19, 2010|archive-date=August 27, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220827192015/https://www.reuters.com/?edition-redirect=in|url-status=dead}}</ref>