Clemens indicted over steroids lies
Source: Agencies |
August 21, 2010, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
A FEDERAL grand jury indicted former Major League Baseball star Roger Clemens on Thursday for allegedly lying to the US Congress about using steroids.
Clemens faces charges of obstruction of Congress, making false statements and perjury.
The six-count grand jury indictment said Clemens obstructed a congressional inquiry with 15 statements that he made under oath, including denials that he had ever used steroids or human growth hormone. The indictment alleged that he lied and committed perjury regarding the same matters.
The seven-time pitcher of the year and his former trainer, Brian McNamee, testified under oath at a 2008 hearing before a congressional committee and contradicted each other about whether Clemens had used the banned substances.
McNamee has told federal agents, MLB investigator George Mitchell and the committee that he injected Clemens more than a dozen times with steroids and human growth hormone from 1998 to 2001.
Clemens has maintained that McNamee was lying.
"As far as we're concerned, it's vindication," Earl Ward, one of McNamee's attorneys, said of the indictment.
Clemens' attorney, Rusty Hardin, said federal prosecutors made Clemens a plea offer but he rejected it. Hardin declined to comment on details of the proposed plea deal -- which ordinarily involves admitting to a crime while avoiding the scenario of a multiple-count indictment as happened in the Clemens case.
Clemens faces a combined maximum sentence of 30 years in prison and a US$1.5 million fine if convicted on all charges. However, under US sentencing guidelines, he would probably face no more than 15 to 21 months in prison.
The case was assigned to US District Judge Reggie Walton, the judge who presided over the perjury and obstruction trial of Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff, Lewis "Scooter" Libby. No date has been set for Clemens' initial court appearance.
In a defiant appearance before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee in 2008, Clemens said, "I've been accused of something I'm not guilty of ... I have never taken steroids or HGH."
Longtime Clemens friend and pitching star Andy Pettite told congressional investigators that Clemens confided to him that he had used human growth hormone. Clemens said Pettite's assertion wasn't correct. "I believe Andy has misheard" the conversation, Clemens responded. He said he had simply mentioned to Pettite a TV show about three older men who used HGH to get back their quality of life.
During a 23-year career, Clemens played for the Boston Red Sox, the Toronto Blue Jays, the New York Yankees and the Houston Astros, chalking up 354 wins, 4,672 strikeouts and a lifetime earned run average of 3.12.
Clemens faces charges of obstruction of Congress, making false statements and perjury.
The six-count grand jury indictment said Clemens obstructed a congressional inquiry with 15 statements that he made under oath, including denials that he had ever used steroids or human growth hormone. The indictment alleged that he lied and committed perjury regarding the same matters.
The seven-time pitcher of the year and his former trainer, Brian McNamee, testified under oath at a 2008 hearing before a congressional committee and contradicted each other about whether Clemens had used the banned substances.
McNamee has told federal agents, MLB investigator George Mitchell and the committee that he injected Clemens more than a dozen times with steroids and human growth hormone from 1998 to 2001.
Clemens has maintained that McNamee was lying.
"As far as we're concerned, it's vindication," Earl Ward, one of McNamee's attorneys, said of the indictment.
Clemens' attorney, Rusty Hardin, said federal prosecutors made Clemens a plea offer but he rejected it. Hardin declined to comment on details of the proposed plea deal -- which ordinarily involves admitting to a crime while avoiding the scenario of a multiple-count indictment as happened in the Clemens case.
Clemens faces a combined maximum sentence of 30 years in prison and a US$1.5 million fine if convicted on all charges. However, under US sentencing guidelines, he would probably face no more than 15 to 21 months in prison.
The case was assigned to US District Judge Reggie Walton, the judge who presided over the perjury and obstruction trial of Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff, Lewis "Scooter" Libby. No date has been set for Clemens' initial court appearance.
In a defiant appearance before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee in 2008, Clemens said, "I've been accused of something I'm not guilty of ... I have never taken steroids or HGH."
Longtime Clemens friend and pitching star Andy Pettite told congressional investigators that Clemens confided to him that he had used human growth hormone. Clemens said Pettite's assertion wasn't correct. "I believe Andy has misheard" the conversation, Clemens responded. He said he had simply mentioned to Pettite a TV show about three older men who used HGH to get back their quality of life.
During a 23-year career, Clemens played for the Boston Red Sox, the Toronto Blue Jays, the New York Yankees and the Houston Astros, chalking up 354 wins, 4,672 strikeouts and a lifetime earned run average of 3.12.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
