Waxman has options but won't commit on Clemens
BASEBALL
Legal experts point up the real possibility of charges after Clemens sticks to his story by testifying he has never used steroids or human growth hormone.
The man who has the power to immediately suggest federal law enforcement authorities launch an investigation into the truthfulness of Roger Clemens' sworn statements to Congress was noncommittal on that subject at the end of Wednesday's "robust discussion."
"I don't know if that's the next step," said Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Beverly Hills), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee that devoted nearly five hours to the intense questioning of Clemens and his former personal trainer Brian McNamee. "That wasn't the focus of my interest."
Perhaps not right away, but legal experts say Waxman's committee and the Department of Justice certainly have options to deliberate after Clemens stuck to his story by testifying he has never used steroids or human growth hormone -- a claim that conflicts with McNamee's own repeated sworn statements.
"If I was Clemens' lawyer or one of his family members, I'd be concerned those charges are coming," said Katherine Darmer, a Chapman University law professor. "And if they end up having physical evidence, it's a slam dunk."
The Justice Department or U.S. Attorney in San Francisco, which has filed charges or gained guilty pleas in performance-enhancing drug cases against Major League Baseball's home run king Barry Bonds, former Olympic champion sprinter Marion Jones, and Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative (BALCO) figures, can also act by convening a grand jury without a House committee request.
Federal agents, including lead BALCO investigator Jeff Novitzky of the IRS, attended Wednesday's hearing. A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's office in San Francisco declined to comment about the implications of Wednesday's hearing.
Clemens, 45, a seven-time Cy Young Award winner with 354 career wins, found himself besieged by new public details Wednesday after telling Waxman and the committee that he "never asked [McNamee] nor did he ever give me steroids or human growth hormone."
Most damaging to Clemens, Darmer said, was the deposition testimony of his longtime friend and teammate Andy Pettitte, who told committee investigators that Clemens told him in 1999 that he'd used human growth hormone.
"Roger had told me that he had taken HGH," Pettitte told investigators under oath. " . . . I think it was just a normal conversation, we were just talking. . . . he had just heard that it helped, like helped your body recover and stuff like that."
- House panel postpones Clemens' appearance Jan 10, 2008
- Major League Baseball turns to Google on steroids issue Sep 17, 2008
- Clemens, McNamee face off on the Hill Feb 14, 2008
