NEW YORK, June 27 (Reuters) - A trainer who testified that
he injected Roger Clemens with performance-enhancing drugs
intends to proceed with a defamation lawsuit against the
baseball legend despite Clemens' recent acquittal on perjury
charges, his lawyer said on Wednesday after a court hearing in
Brooklyn.
Brian McNamee filed the civil lawsuit in 2009, seeking an
unspecified amount in monetary damages from Clemens, who he
trained with during stints at the Toronto Blue Jays and the New
York Yankees. McNamee said his life has been ruined by
interviews in which Clemens and his lawyers said he was "off the
deep end" and trying to "shake (Clemens) down" with "totally
false" statements.
McNamee recently appeared as a witness for the government in
Clemens' trial on charges that he lied under oath to
congressional investigators about using steroids and other
performance-enhancing drugs. Clemens has publicly denied
McNamee's account and, on June 18, was cleared by a jury of the
perjury charges.
Following a hearing in Brooklyn federal court to discuss the
status of the civil lawsuit, a lawyer for McNamee said he is
asking Clemens' lawyers to turn over grand jury testimony and
other sealed statements made by Clemens and other key figures in
the criminal case.
McNamee's lawyer, Richard Emery, said he hopes to push the
defamation case to trial within the next year. It will be up to
a jury to decide whether Clemens or McNamee was lying, Emery
said, noting the different standard for civil cases compared to
criminal charges.
"Brian's life has essentially been destroyed by this case,"
Emery said, referring to Clemens' perjury trial.
Clemens' lawyer, Rusty Hardin, said the government would
weigh in on whether he could turn over grand jury testimony and
other documents he received as part of Clemens' perjury defense.
Hardin said Clemens "feels very good" about his recent
acquittal but declined to comment on the specifics of the
McNamee lawsuit.
Clemens, a seven-time Cy Young award winner, is considered
one of the greatest pitchers in professional baseball history.
His first federal perjury trial ended in a mistrial in 2011
after the jury was shown inadmissible evidence.
The case is McNamee v. Clemens, in the U.S. District Court
for the Eastern District of New York, no. 09-1647.
For Clemens: Rusty Hardin.
For McNamee: Richard Emery of Emery Celli Brinckerhoff &
Abady.
(Reporting by Jessica Dye)
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