Barry Bonds indicted on perjury, obstruction charges

**Amorphic** · 11-15-2007, 07:17 PM

Taken from mercs blog with permission.

Baseball player Barry Bonds indicted on perjury, obstruction charges
41 minutes ago

SAN FRANCISCO - Barry Bonds has been indicted for perjury and obstruction of justice, charged with lying when he told a federal grand jury that he did not knowingly use performance-enhancing drugs.

The indictment unsealed Thursday against baseball's home run king culminated a four-year investigation into steroid use by elite athletes. "During the criminal investigation, evidence was obtained including positive tests for the presence of anabolic steroids and other performance-enhancing substances for Bonds and other athletes," the indictment read.

In August, the 43-year-old Bonds passed Hank Aaron to become baseball's career home run leader. Late in the season, the San Francisco Giants told the seven-time National League MVP they didn't want him back next year.

Bonds finished the year with 762 career homers, seven more than Aaron, and is currently a free agent. In 2001, he set the season record with 73 home runs.

John Burris, one of Bonds' lawyers, did not know of the indictment before being alerted by The Associated Press. He said he would immediately call Bonds to notify him.

"I'm surprised," Burris said, "but there's been an effort to get Barry for a long time. I'm curious what evidence they have now they didn't have before."

Bonds has repeatedly denied knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs. He has never been identified by Major League Baseball as testing positive.

The White House quickly weighed in on the indictment. President Bush is a former owner of the Texas Rangers.

"The president is very disappointed to hear this," Bush spokesman Tony Fratto said. "As this case is now in the criminal justice system, we will refrain from any further specific comments about it. But clearly this is a sad day for baseball."

Former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell, who is investigating drug use in baseball, declined comment. So did Hall of Fame vice-president Jeff Idelson.

Bonds was charged in the indictment with lying when he said he didn't knowingly take steroids given to him by his personal trainer and longtime friend, Greg Anderson. Bonds is also charged with lying that Anderson never injected him with steroids.

"Greg wouldn't do that," Bonds testified in December 2003 when asked if Anderson ever gave him any drugs that needed to be injected. "He knows I'm against that stuff."

Bonds became the highest-profile figure caught up in the government investigation launched in 2002 with the raid of the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative (BALCO), the Burlingame-based supplements lab at the centre of a steroids distribution ring.

Bonds has long been shadowed by allegations that he used performance-enhancing drugs. The son of former big league star Bobby Bonds, Barry broke into the majors with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1986 as a lithe, base-stealing outfielder.

By the late 1990s, he'd bulked up to more than 240 pounds - his head, in particular, becoming noticeably bigger. His physical growth was accompanied by a remarkable power surge.

Speculation of his impending indictment had mounted for more than a year.

In July 2006, the U.S. attorney in San Francisco took the unusual step of going public with the investigation. After the previous panel's 18-month term expired, he announced he was handing it off to a new grand jury.

Anderson was at the centre of the investigation. He spent most of the past year in a federal detention centre for refusing to testify to the grand jury.

According to testimony obtained by the San Francisco Chronicle, Bonds testified in 2003 that he took two substances given to him by Anderson - which he called "the cream" and "the clear" - to soothe aches and pains and help him better recover from injuries.

The substances fit the description of steroids distributed by BALCO founder Victor Conte. But when questioned under oath by investigators, Bonds said he believed Anderson had given him flaxseed oil and an arthritic balm.

Investigators and the public had their doubts.

Aiming to prove Bonds a liar, prosecutors tried to compel Anderson to testify. When he refused, they jailed him for contempt.

Bonds joins several defendants tied to BALCO. Anderson served three months in prison and three months of home detention after pleading guilty to steroid distribution and money laundering.

Conte also served three months in prison after he pleaded guilty to steroids distribution.

Patrick Arnold, the rogue chemist who created the designer steroid THG, BALCO vice-president James Valente and track coach Remi Korchemny all also pleaded guilty. Korchemny and Valente were sentenced to probation and Arnold sent to prison for four months.

Kirk Radomski, a former New York Mets clubhouse attendant, pleaded guilty April 27 to drug and money laundering charges.

Elite cyclist Tammy Thomas and track coach Trevor Graham have each pleaded not guilty to lying to a grand jury and federal investigators about their involvement with steroids.

Dozens of other prominent athletes have been connected to BALCO, including New York Yankees slugger Jason Giambi who told the grand jury he injected steroids purchased at BALCO and Detroit Tigers outfielder Gary Sheffield who testified that Bonds introduced him to BALCO

Thoughts on this everyone?

**QuieTSToRM33** · 11-15-2007, 07:17 PM

bullshit ... they haven't touched him in 4 years .... all of a sudden they have enough for a case

**football2007** · 11-15-2007, 07:33 PM

with permission?

Lol he didnt write it...

Surprised it took this long for someone to post this..

This is a joke...I figured the feds wouldnt stop til they could catch him...

Took them long enough

**Logan13** · 11-15-2007, 07:39 PM

Originally Posted by football2007

with permission?

Lol he didnt write it...

Surprised it took this long for someone to post this..

This is a joke...I figured the feds wouldnt stop til they could catch him...

Took them long enough

it is a joke. But perhaps it is must karma getting back around to bonds for being such an ass all these years............

**dedic8ed1** · 11-15-2007, 07:40 PM

They didn't have shite 4 years ago and they ain't got shite now.

ANDERSON STUCK TO HIS GUNS,MAD RESPECT

**Amorphic** · 11-15-2007, 07:42 PM

Originally Posted by football2007

with permission?

Lol he didnt write it...

thank you captain obvious. i know, he posted it in his blog and i just wanted to make it clear that i didnt just jack it off there without him knowing.

**Igifuno** · 11-15-2007, 07:59 PM

Originally Posted by Amorphic

thank you captain obvious. i know, he posted it in his blog and i just wanted to make it clear that i didnt just jack it off there without him knowing.

**thegodfather** · 11-15-2007, 08:01 PM

Witch hunt....plain and simple...

**Fordfan01** · 11-15-2007, 08:08 PM

Originally Posted by dedic8ed1

They didn't have shite 4 years ago and they ain't got shite now.

ANDERSON STUCK TO HIS GUNS,MAD RESPECT

agreed i dont think nething will come of this

**PROTEINSHAKE** · 11-15-2007, 08:10 PM

anderson was released from prison a few hrs after the indictments were brought against BONDS.... I think he rolled.

**Igifuno** · 11-15-2007, 08:13 PM

probly right..

**football2007** · 11-15-2007, 08:13 PM

Originally Posted by Amorphic

thank you captain obvious. i know, he posted it in his blog and i just wanted to make it clear that i didnt just jack it off there without him knowing.

Your welcome. I haven't been called captain obvious since I was like 12.

Maybe you should ask the site he got it off for permission to post it here?

**305GUY** · 11-15-2007, 08:17 PM

Originally Posted by dedic8ed1

ANDERSON STUCK TO HIS GUNS,MAD RESPECT

YUP!!! Its hard to find someone like that nowadays. Thats true loyalty right there. I really hope Bonds hands the prosecution their asses in this case!!

**305GUY** · 11-15-2007, 08:19 PM

Originally Posted by football2007

Your welcome. I haven't been called captain obvious since I was like 12.

Maybe you should ask the site he got it off for permission to post it here?

chill out bro. you're the one who made the first smart ass comment, so be easy and stay on topic to the thread...

**Igifuno** · 11-15-2007, 08:23 PM

agreed, chill out - no reason for attitude here. take it somewhere else.

**Amorphic** · 11-15-2007, 08:27 PM

a few sources for my polite friend

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3112487

http://origin.mercurynews.com/giants...nclick_check=1

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slu...v=ap&type=lgns

**xlxBigSexyxlx** · 11-15-2007, 08:30 PM

Barry 2 years ago:
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k1...enter_08-1.jpg

Barry Now:
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k1...enter_09-1.jpg

**dedic8ed1** · 11-15-2007, 08:32 PM

How can you charge someone with perjury and obstruction of justice there the same thing.

**football2007** · 11-15-2007, 08:40 PM

Stupid fed always seems to charge people with things that are the same thing.

Its like charging people that get caught running UGLs with tax evasion, money laundering...etc

Oh here you go IRS..here are your $12,000 in taxes that I made off of selling black market steroids .

**Logan13** · 11-15-2007, 08:45 PM

Originally Posted by dedic8ed1

How can you charge someone with perjury and obstruction of justice there the same thing.

Not the same thing. My guess is that the obstruction of justice stems from his perjury.

**dedic8ed1** · 11-15-2007, 08:51 PM

Originally Posted by Logan13

Not the same thing. My guess is that the obstruction of justice stems from his perjury.

2 charges for the same crime?there both avoiding telling the truth.

I'm more arguing the law itself and am not educated in even in the slightest,It just feels like a double jeapordy kind of thing,But I'm sure your gonna refuite that some way but it's crap and that's all there is to it.
no flame just m/o

**qualityclrk1** · 11-15-2007, 08:54 PM

barry bonds is a bitch.....nothing to do w/whether or not he willingly took steroids .....his attitude, the way he carries himself, the way he treats teammates, coaches and fans is ridiculous...he's arrogant, he's an ass hole, and he's rude....i'm not a racist guy but whenever anything negative happens to him or whenever anyone begins to put him in his place he always pulls the race card- him and dusty baker both....."barry why do u think you have the reputation that you have of being a mean guy?"...Barry: "its because i'm black, you didn't see people talking to babe ruth like they talk to me"

**305GUY** · 11-15-2007, 09:02 PM

Originally Posted by qualityclrk1

barry bonds is a bitch.....nothing to do w/whether or not he willingly took steroids.....his attitude, the way he carries himself, the way he treats teammates, coaches and fans is ridiculous...he's arrogant, he's an ass hole, and he's rude....i'm not a racist guy but whenever anything negative happens to him or whenever anyone begins to put him in his place he always pulls the race card- him and dusty baker both....."barry why do u think you have the reputation that you have of being a mean guy?"...Barry: "its because i'm black, you didn't see people talking to babe ruth like they talk to me"

so you think he deserves jail time for being a prick!?!

**qualityclrk1** · 11-15-2007, 09:09 PM

Originally Posted by 305GUY

so you think he deserves jail time for being a prick!?!

i have mixed feelings...if they really do have evidence beyond a REASONABLE DOUBT (which i doubt)..that he knowingly did this and he knew he was lieing to investigators...then somehow he should be punished- unfortunately that is the law....get it in our heads...it is the law!...but do any of us think he should actually go to jail for this? idk its a tough situation to call...if barry wasn't breaking records we wouldn't even be here, so i feel like he's getting a rough deal because he was so good..you think if the cleveland indians hadn't made it as far as they had you'd have heard anything about their pitched (Byrd?) getting busted for HGH? i honestly don't think so....but i don't like how he acts, and i have mixed feelings about whether or not his records should get erased....on one side i feel like yeh they should because he technically cheated and i don't think anyone is going to accuse Hank Aaron or Ruth or whoever else of taking them....but on the other side, pitching is a lot better today, barry isn't the only guy taking steroids ...so it takes a lot more than just getting strong to play baseball...it still requires a lot of god gifted talent and a lot of hard work....so idk?...i was just speaking my opinion that barry was a jerk...

**spywizard** · 11-15-2007, 09:21 PM

that's why you never.. ever answer questions..

**305GUY** · 11-15-2007, 09:25 PM

He may be a jerk. But the last thing he deserves is this bullshit whether he lied under oath or not. He should have never been on the stand anyways. AAS wasnt even banned in the MLB until 2002 (if i'm not mistaken) so lets just say he had all his gains within that time frame. Nobody can prove otherwise... There are many players in the MLB who use AAS and to single out the best is simply just for the DA and prosecutors to get their name out there. Jerk or not the man deserves to enjoy the record he broke and the poor guy cant even do that... Without Anderson's testimony they got nothing imo.. as sated before its a F*cking witch hunt. I hope Bonds comes out a winner in this and can retire in peace.

**qualityclrk1** · 11-15-2007, 09:28 PM

another thing major league baseball is for our ENTERTAINMENT....why is this such a big deal- its not like barry was going around selling drugs or whatever...why are they coming so hard on baseball players? they're entertainers....nothing else...WWE.....entertainers...same thing- different sport...you don't see the feds crackin their skull....

**Logan13** · 11-15-2007, 09:55 PM

Originally Posted by 305GUY

He may be a jerk. But the last thing he deserves is this bullshit whether he lied under oath or not. He should have never been on the stand anyways. AAS wasnt even banned in the MLB until 2002 (if i'm not mistaken) so lets just say he had all his gains within that time frame. Nobody can prove otherwise... There are many players in the MLB who use AAS and to single out the best is simply just for the DA and prosecutors to get their name out there. Jerk or not the man deserves to enjoy the record he broke and the poor guy cant even do that... Without Anderson's testimony they got nothing imo.. as sated before its a F*cking witch hunt. I hope Bonds comes out a winner in this and can retire in peace.

spywizard is right, plead the Fifth.........

**football2007** · 11-15-2007, 11:29 PM

Originally Posted by 305GUY

He may be a jerk. But the last thing he deserves is this bullshit whether he lied under oath or not. He should have never been on the stand anyways. AAS wasnt even banned in the MLB until 2002 (if i'm not mistaken) so lets just say he had all his gains within that time frame. Nobody can prove otherwise... There are many players in the MLB who use AAS and to single out the best is simply just for the DA and prosecutors to get their name out there. Jerk or not the man deserves to enjoy the record he broke and the poor guy cant even do that... Without Anderson's testimony they got nothing imo.. as sated before its a F*cking witch hunt. I hope Bonds comes out a winner in this and can retire in peace.

agreed on all pts.

**qualityclrk1** · 11-15-2007, 11:48 PM

AAS wasn't banned in baseball?....Hasn't it been illegal in the states period??

**football2007** · 11-16-2007, 12:06 AM

yeah but there wasnt a drug policy in the MLB til 2002 or 2003...

**qualityclrk1** · 11-16-2007, 12:32 AM

Originally Posted by football2007

yeah but there wasnt a drug policy in the MLB til 2002 or 2003...

Thats irrelevant.......just because they didn't test for it, doesn't give him the right to do it in their eyes because it was illegal.....the feds can still get him for using steroids , and then to make matters worse- he lied about it.....that gives baseball every right in the world to keep him out of the hall of fame and to abolish his record....Pete Rose probably won't get because he was accused of gambling- they never really could prove it, and he fought and fought and fought and tried to say he was innocent...well he finally came out and admitted to it hoping that if he'd just fess up it'd get him in...but no- he lied!!!! thats just another strike on him...- MAYBE after he dies they'll let him.....Darryl Strawberry will never get in because of his recreational drug use which had no affects on his performance whatsoever...if anything it hurt him!..it doesn't matter....Barry broke the law, lied about it and won't get in because of it...(if they can prove it)

**ndixon1517** · 11-16-2007, 02:35 AM

Originally Posted by xlxBigSexyxlx

Barry 5 years ago:
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k1...enter_08-1.jpg

Barry Now:
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k1...enter_09-1.jpg

**ndixon1517** · 11-16-2007, 02:39 AM

Originally Posted by qualityclrk1

Thats irrelevant.......just because they didn't test for it, doesn't give him the right to do it in their eyes because it was illegal.....the feds can still get him for using steroids, and then to make matters worse- he lied about it.....that gives baseball every right in the world to keep him out of the hall of fame and to abolish his record....Pete Rose probably won't get because he was accused of gambling- they never really could prove it, and he fought and fought and fought and tried to say he was innocent...well he finally came out and admitted to it hoping that if he'd just fess up it'd get him in...but no- he lied!!!! thats just another strike on him...- MAYBE after he dies they'll let him.....Darryl Strawberry will never get in because of his recreational drug use which had no affects on his performance whatsoever...if anything it hurt him!..it doesn't matter....Barry broke the law, lied about it and won't get in because of it...(if they can prove it)

I agree with this. It's sad that our government can tell us what we can and can't put in our bodies. I'm all for making narcotics and drugs that Alter the state of mind illegal, but to tell Americans that they cannot take roids. Soo much for that "free" country.

**xlxBigSexyxlx** · 11-16-2007, 07:26 AM

Originally Posted by ndixon1517

lol Im glad at least 1 person got a little enjoyment off of that

**thegodfather** · 11-16-2007, 08:45 AM

Originally Posted by ndixon1517

I agree with this. It's sad that our government can tell us what we can and can't put in our bodies. I'm all for making narcotics and drugs that Alter the state of mind illegal, but to tell Americans that they cannot take roids. Soo much for that "free" country.

You cant be all for one without the other. I am completely in favor of every drug being illegal, so long as you can prove that it's use does not have a deleterious affect on another persons life, liberty, or pursuit of happiness. I believe that if taking a recreational narcotic makes you happy, then more power to you, if you can do so while still contributing to society, I dont see a problem with it. I also dont think that if SOME people abuse those things, and are become unproductive members of society, that it should then be made illegal for everyone. There is no reason to punish the masses for the actions of a few.

**BITTAPART2** · 11-16-2007, 09:28 AM

Originally Posted by spywizard

that's why you never.. ever answer questions..

in this case hed be locked up for contempt bro. I think he did the right thing for himself to stay clear of jail here. i dont see how the govt. would have evidence that he "knowingly" used steroids . Unless of course they have a needle with residu and his DNA on it or something. Perhaps a lot of evidence they would have would not be admissable in court such as phone convos or anything obtained w/o a search warrant. Heres where it gets tricky though, a federal case can use testimony of other people as admissable evidence in a fed case (heresy). You can sit John Smith on the stand and he can say, "yeah Barry told us he used steroids" and if objected on by the defense , the judge would overule the objection and let the testimony proceed.

I dont understand America right now...what are the three unaliable rights of an american? life, liberty and the PERSUIT OF HAPPINESS. Is it 2008 yet?

**IronReload04** · 11-16-2007, 10:02 AM

http://sports.aol.com/mlb/story/_a/b...00010000000001

i swear to god, this pisses me off so much...sorry to get anybody worked up on a friday, but come on, what are they accomplishing by putting productive members of society away for having chemical muscle masss.....jesus-MIND YOUR OWN ****ING BUSINESS-christ

They are trying to say thad he lied to a jury by saying he has never used, and will try to put him away for 30 years...trial starts in a month

**Jenseno9** · 11-16-2007, 10:10 AM

I think he was indited for perjury and obstuction not for using steroids .

**GimmeAHellYeah** · 11-16-2007, 10:10 AM

The only thing I got to say about this is. Dont they have better and more important things to spend millions of dollars on then stopping people from using this stuff. How about the whole oil issue, the war, millions of other things. One baseball player breaks a drunks HR record and they go nuts. Its ridiculous. And on top of it, 30 yrs???? For what lieing?? OMG. I shoulda been put away the day I was able to talk, everyone lies.