Now, a New Probe of Donovan

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The Justice Department now finds itself in the uncomfortable position of deciding whether to appoint special prosecutors to investigate two top officials in the Reagan Administration. In the case of National Security Adviser Richard Allen, the department is trying to determine whether he may have violated any laws by accepting two watches valued at $270, or by misreporting the date when he sold his consulting business. Both Donovan and Allen have survived previous inquiries into their conduct. But this time, the whiff of scandal has become so politically damaging that the Administration may cut them loose no matter what the Justice Department decides.