A federal appeals court upheld former Giants slugger Barry Bonds' obstruction of justice conviction based on his perceived 'rambling' testimony he gave in 2003 before a grand jury, the Associated Press reported. The grand jury has continued to investigate performance enhancing drug use prevalent among Major League Baseball players.
The 9th U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that the home run king's testimony was "evasive" and capable of misleading investigators, which may have hindered their probe into a PED ring known as BALCO, or the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative.
Bonds was soon convicted by the jury for a single felony count of obstruction, which drew from the answer he gave about whether Greg Anderson, his trainer, had injected him with a substance. He opted to discuss the difficulties of being the son of his famous father Bobby Bonds, confusing the grand jury.
The long winded statement Bonds said under oath was: "That's what keeps our friendship. You know, I am sorry, but that - you know, that - I was a celebrity child, not just in baseball by my own instincts. I became a celebrity child with a famous father. I just don't get into other people's business because of my father's situation, you see ..." as reported by the AP.
The jury was also deadlocked on three other counts of perjury over his denial that he knowingly used drugs, as the charges were later dismissed.
"The statement served to divert the grand jury's attention away from the relevant inquiry of the investigation, which was Anderson and BALCO's distribution of steroids and PEDs," Judge Mary Schroeder wrote at the time. "The statement was therefore evasive."
"Bonds is eligible to ask a special 11-judge panel of the 9th Circuit to reconsider his case or can petition the U.S. Supreme Court to hear his appeal. If Bonds' convictions stands, he must serve the 30 days of house arrest with two years probation he was sentenced to after his 2011 trial," the AP also reported.
Prosecutors sought a 15-month prison sentence.
Barry Bonds, a one-time for the shoo-in for the Baseball Hall of Fame, is one of a handful of players embroiled in the PED scandal. He finished with a record 762 home runs. MLB analysts still regard Bonds as one of the greatest baseball players of all time, whether he took PEDs or not.
Alex Rodriguez is the most high-profile (and highest paid) player to likely be suspended by the league after this season for reportedly 211 games, pending his appeal. He has still played about half of this season, coming back from the disabled list for the New York Yankees.
Ryan Braun, a former MVP, has already been suspended by the league, for PEDs.
