Lester Munson: No retrial since government purposely defied judge order

[Steroid News]

ESPN's legal "expert" Lester Munson doesn't think the Judge will allow a retrial of Roger Clemens by the government; he believes the government purposely and directly defied the judge's order opening the door for Clemens to go free.

This is not the reaction expected from Munson. He was incredibly and unapologetically biased in favor of the federal government in the Barry Bonds trial. Now, he seems to show a bias in favor of Roger Clemens and against the feds. Hmmm.

If Walton, as he indicated in his statements in court, continues to view the prosecution error as deliberate, there may not be a second trial.

In addition to the possibility that it was a deliberate violation of the order, the mistake came on a witness, Andy Pettite, whom Walton regards as "the most critical" in the case. [...]

If the violation of a pre-trial order had come with any of the 44 other government witnesses, there would have been no mistrial.

Walton's conclusion that the government prosecutors were guilty of a "direct violation of my ruling" adds to the likelihood that he will rule against a second trial.

The prosecutors' best chance to preserve their opportunity for a second trial will be to put together a convincing account of their work on the trial evidence was careful and professional that there was no deliberate intent to violate Walton's order. [...]

A mistrial like this is a rare event in federal courts. Deliberate defiance of a judge's order by federal prosecutors is even rarer. But this combination of rare events could allow Clemens to walk away from a massive investigation and prosecution that seemed likely to send him to prison.

Read more: Roger Clemens mistrial could mean former all-star pitcher walks on perjury charges - ESPN