The judge in Roger Clemens‘ perjury case has declared a mistrial over evidence he deemed would prejudice the jury.
U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton ruled that prosecutors violated his orders not to reveal certain evidence to the jury.
Clemens is accused of lying about using performance-enhancing drugs during his Major League baseball career.
Clemens’ former teammate and friend, Andy Pettitte, testified that Clemens told him that he used human growth hormone. Pettitte says he told his wife, Laura, about the conversation the same day it happened. Clemens claims that Pettitte misheard him.
What seems to be in question is video from Clemens’ testimony before Congress in 2008. Walton was upset that the video showed Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., referring to Petitte’s conversation with his wife.
“I think that a first-year law student would know that you can’t bolster the credibility of one witness with clearly inadmissible evidence,” Walton said.
Walton was also angry about an incident that happened during opening arguments on Wednesday when assistant U.S. attorney Steven Durham said that Pettitte and two of Clemens’ other New York teammates, Chuck Knoblauch and Mike Stanton, had used human growth hormone.
The judge said such testimony could lead jurors to consider Clemens guilty by association.