Judith Miller, locked up for refusing to reveal who told her a covert CIA operative’s name in a probe that may be nearing a conclusion, works part time at the jail laundry helping clean fellow inmates’ green jumpsuits and dirty linens.

Okay. Prison linens probably are pretty gross. But Miller may not have to wash nasty bedsheets for too much longer.

Attorney Theodore Boutrous, who represents Time magazine and its reporter, Matthew Cooper, said Miller’s “standoff” with Fitzgerald may be coming to a head.

“Either Fitzgerald still needs Miller or he doesn’t,” Boutrous said. “It’s who blinks first. … You would think something needs to happen soon, one way or another.”

Miller’s lawyer, Floyd Abrams, isn’t exactly denying that there is movement in the case:

Asked if talks were under way with special counsel Patrick Fitzgerald, a Justice Department prosecutor, to secure Miller’s testimony and release, Abrams said: “If there are any discussions, they would be private.”

“She is there (in jail) for a reason. At this time, the reason is still there. She made a promise and, unless properly released from her promise by her source, she has no choice but to continue to take the position that she’s taking,” Abrams said.

He declined comment when asked if Miller, who was sent to jail on July 6 though she never wrote an article about the Plame matter, had reached out anew to her source for a clear release from confidentiality that would allow her to testify.

Methinks Judy played her cards wrong. Is she asking someone like Rove to release her from a confidentiality agreement? Isn’t that like saying, “Hey Karl! I’m in jail, will you please come take my place?”

In any case:

Several lawyers involved in the case say Fitzgerald was likely to wrap up his inquiry this fall, if not sooner, though they say they have not heard from his office in weeks.

The outcome could have political implications for Bush, whose approval ratings are already the lowest of his presidency.

Judy is in jail until she talks or until the Grand Jury expires in October. Fitzgerald will be reluctant to make the Grand Jury extend their already endless stay. If he feels like he needs Miller’s testimony expect him to throw the book at her. More likely, we will see indictments in the coming weeks.