Barry Bonds' Felony Conviction To Be Reconsidered By Federal Appeals Court
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF)— A federal appeals court says it will reconsider Barry Bonds' felony conviction for obstruction of justice.
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on Tuesday that a special panel of 11 judges will review a 2011 jury verdict finding Major League Baseball's all-time homerun leader guilty of giving evasive testimony to a grand jury during an investigation into allegations of steroid sales to professional athletes.
A three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit last year upheld the conviction, which stems from a rambling answer Bonds gave in response to a question about whether he received injections from anyone other than his doctor.
Bonds, 49, has been fighting the charges since he was indicted in 2007. The indictment was revised several times and at one point included 14 counts of making false statements and one count of obstruction.
Bonds has already served his sentence of 30 days' house arrest, 250 hours of community service, two-years' probation and he paid a $4,100 fine.
Attorneys for Bonds have argued that federal prosecutors were seeking a "conviction of a high-profile defendant at any cost" and pursuing charges of obstruction of justice against Bonds despite being unable to prove that he lied.
If Bonds loses the appeal, his next step would be an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.
The court has not set a date for a new hearing.
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