He answered the question — saying no — later in his testimony, and the jury did not convict him on that point, the defense said, so Bonds should be acquitted. But United States District Court Judge Susan Illston said it did not matter that Bonds eventually answered the question. In her ruling, she wrote that the question was material to the investigation and that “the defendant endeavored to obstruct the grand jury by not answering it when first asked.”
She added, “An evasive answer about an issue material to the grand jury is not necessarily rendered immaterial by the later provision of a direct answer, even if that direct answer is true.”
