May 29, 1999 -- NEW YORK -- Just when you thought StarrGate got quiet again, another of those juicy "loose ends" has cropped up.

This time, it's the one that could land Linda Tripp in jail.

An unidentified source told The Baltimore Sun earlier today that Maryland prosecutors have asked Judge Norma Holloway Johnson, the federal judge overseeing Independent Counsel Kenneth W. Starr's grand jury investigation of President Clinton, for access to Linda Tripp's secret tape recordings of Monica Lewinsky -- the party tapes that launched the failed attempt to oust Clinton from office.

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State Prosecutor Stephen Montanarelli, who has been leading a grand jury investigation in Maryland into whether Tripp knowingly violated state law by taping Lewinsky, has tried unsuccessfully since July to obtain the tapes, which remain in Starr's custody. In order to prove Tripp guilty, Montanarelli must establish independently that Tripp made the tapes and knew that taping Lewinsky without her knowledge was illegal.

This may spell serious trouble for Starr -- whether or not Montanarelli gets the tapes. Troubling questions remain as to the circumstances by which Starr learned of the tapes' existence, as well as the circumstances under which Starr granted Tripp immunity in exchange for the tapes and her testimony -- a move questioned by a large number of prosecutors and legal scholars. Starr himself is the subject of an investigation by the Bar Association of the District of Columbia -- and the handling of the Tripp tapes remain one of the most vexing and controversial issues concerning Starr's conduct.

It's safe to say that the "fat lady has not even begun to warm up" with regard to the Montanarelli investigation. And speaking of fat ladies warming up, it's fair to say that Linda Tripp must be feeling the heat.