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On July 1, US District Judge Susan Illston will decide whether the conviction of Barry Bonds will be scrapped from the records or will consider a retrial of the case. America?s home run king was convicted last April for obstruction of justice in relation to his testimony in the 2003 BALCO investigation. Judge Illston declared mistrial on other charges when the jurors failed to arrive at a majority decision.
Bonds? Lawyers Filed a Motion Seeking Acquittal
Bonds? lawyers explained in its court filing that the conviction should be tossed because the jury based its decision on flawed instructions. They also contend that the prosecution failed to prove that Barry Bonds gave false testimony to a federal grand jury. Rambling answers are not considered federal crime said his lawyers.
They insist that Bonds answered directly all questions asked by the prosecution in the grand jury testimony. ?The government may not have liked his answers, but Mr. Bonds did answer the questions put to him about injectable steroids. A single non-responsive answer, coupled with responsive answers to the same question, cannot be criminally evasive, cannot be material and cannot be intentionally obstructive,? they said in the court filing.
Another issue cited by the defense is the failure of the prosecution to notify Bonds of the specific charge because the allegedly false statement was not included in the 2007 indictment.
Prosecution Keeping Mum on Their Next Move
The media failed to get any comments from the prosecution. However, they are expected to file an answer to the motion by the defense. It is still unclear whether the government will seek for a retrial on the 3 deadlock charges. The jury was not able to reach a verdict on the perjury charges specifically Bonds? allege lying about steroid use and whether personal trainer Greg Anderson supplied him with illegal performance enhancing drugs.
Jury Foreman Confident They Made the Right Decision
In the interview with Mercury News, jury foreman Fred Jacob said that the prosecution was able to prove the obstruction of justice charge. ?We didn?t really see any ambiguity at all in the count. We felt on the one count that it was just obvious there was an obstruction. We felt that was one that could stand on its own,? Jacob said.
According to Jacob, another retrial will not help the prosecution. The only thing that could put Bonds in jail is the testimony of Greg Anderson who continuously refuses to testify against his friend. ?It seems like it would be a huge waste of time,? Jacob said.
During Bonds? grand jury testimony, he admitted receiving flaxseed oil, vitamins, creams and protein shakes from his former trainer. However, he denied that he knowingly received anabolic steroids and human growth hormones.
The slugger from the San Francisco Giants holds the home run record in baseball when he surpassed Hank Aaron?s record. He got 762 home runs when he unofficially retired from baseball in 2007.
Bonds? Lawyers Filed a Motion Seeking Acquittal
Bonds? lawyers explained in its court filing that the conviction should be tossed because the jury based its decision on flawed instructions. They also contend that the prosecution failed to prove that Barry Bonds gave false testimony to a federal grand jury. Rambling answers are not considered federal crime said his lawyers.
They insist that Bonds answered directly all questions asked by the prosecution in the grand jury testimony. ?The government may not have liked his answers, but Mr. Bonds did answer the questions put to him about injectable steroids. A single non-responsive answer, coupled with responsive answers to the same question, cannot be criminally evasive, cannot be material and cannot be intentionally obstructive,? they said in the court filing.
Another issue cited by the defense is the failure of the prosecution to notify Bonds of the specific charge because the allegedly false statement was not included in the 2007 indictment.
Prosecution Keeping Mum on Their Next Move
The media failed to get any comments from the prosecution. However, they are expected to file an answer to the motion by the defense. It is still unclear whether the government will seek for a retrial on the 3 deadlock charges. The jury was not able to reach a verdict on the perjury charges specifically Bonds? allege lying about steroid use and whether personal trainer Greg Anderson supplied him with illegal performance enhancing drugs.
Jury Foreman Confident They Made the Right Decision
In the interview with Mercury News, jury foreman Fred Jacob said that the prosecution was able to prove the obstruction of justice charge. ?We didn?t really see any ambiguity at all in the count. We felt on the one count that it was just obvious there was an obstruction. We felt that was one that could stand on its own,? Jacob said.
According to Jacob, another retrial will not help the prosecution. The only thing that could put Bonds in jail is the testimony of Greg Anderson who continuously refuses to testify against his friend. ?It seems like it would be a huge waste of time,? Jacob said.
During Bonds? grand jury testimony, he admitted receiving flaxseed oil, vitamins, creams and protein shakes from his former trainer. However, he denied that he knowingly received anabolic steroids and human growth hormones.
The slugger from the San Francisco Giants holds the home run record in baseball when he surpassed Hank Aaron?s record. He got 762 home runs when he unofficially retired from baseball in 2007.