As expected, Barry Bonds appeared in federal court today to plead not guilty of charges of perjury and obstruction of justice incurred in his BALCO grand jury testimony. To City News:
Barry Bonds has faced a lot of umpires in his life, but none of them could ever sentence him to prison. Until now. The ex-Giants slugger took a walk into a San Francisco courtroom on Friday, and pleaded not guilty to charges he lied to U.S. investigators about using performance enhancing drugs.
The case against him could wind up resembling an All-Star game, with prosecutors hoping testimony from former teammates and other players will eventually point to the home run king's guilt.
They allege Bonds knowingly and repeatedly lied under oath when he claimed he'd never used any of the substances in question. And they claim to have a blood test from November 2000 labelled "Barry B" that shows there were two kinds of steroids in his system...
The basis of the case goes back to his words from December 2003, when Bonds testified before a grand jury about a probe of a local Bay Area lab. His accusers insist they found evidence he lied 19 different times while on the stand, despite swearing to tell the truth.
Everyone ready for the 'Year of the Bonds Trial'?
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