Greg Anderson held in contempt, returned to jail

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SAN FRANCISCO -- An angry judge sent Barry Bonds' personal trainer back to jail Monday for refusing to talk about the Giants slugger, as well as New York Yankees outfielder Gary Sheffield.

Jeff Chiu/AP PhotoGreg Anderson, who previously served three months in prison, is back in jail for an undetermined stretch.

Greg Anderson, found in contempt of court for refusing to testify, could remain behind bars for more than a year while a federal grand jury investigates Bonds for perjury and tax evasion.

"Sometimes sitting in the cooler for a long time may have a therapeutic effect and may change his mind," U.S. District Judge William Alsup said Monday, suggesting Anderson could remain behind bars for as long as 16 months -- the remainder of the grand jury's term.

Alsup recited some of the questions Anderson refused to answer, including whether he injected Bonds with steroids and "whether Anderson knows Barry Bonds or Gary Sheffield."

Prosecutor Matthew Parrella told the judge the government also was investigating unnamed athletes associated with Anderson and said there was a "mountain of evidence" to form the basis of the questions asked of Anderson. He said the evidence included documents seized at Anderson's house in the BALCO investigation and from "testimony of other witnesses."

Sheffield, who testified before the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative grand jury in 2003, has admitted using a cream he got from Anderson but said in a 2004 interview with Sports Illustrated that he did not knowingly use steroids.

In the book "Game of Shadows," however, two San Francisco Chronicle reporters wrote that Anderson put Sheffield on injectable testosterone and human growth hormone in 2002, later selling him designer steroids known as "the cream" and "the clear."

Sheffield adopted Bonds' heavy training program when he visited the San Francisco star after the 2001 season and lived at his home in Hillsborough for two months, according to the book published earlier this year.

Although Bonds and Sheffield later had a personal falling out, Sheffield wanted to maintain a relationship with Anderson so he could keep getting the drugs, the authors wrote.

Rufus Williams, Sheffield's agent, did not immediately return calls for comment. Sheffield has been on the disabled list since May when he injured his left wrist.

Anderson previously served three months in prison and three months of home detention after pleading guilty to steroid distribution and money laundering in the investigation of BALCO, which allegedly supplied Bonds and other elite athletes with performance-enhancing drugs. He has appeared five times before two federal grand juries without answering pertinent questions.

At issue is whether Bonds lied under oath when he told the grand jury investigating BALCO in 2003 that he did not knowingly use steroids and that Anderson gave him what he believed to be flaxseed oil and arthritic balm.

Anderson has refused to say whether he gave Bonds steroids. Alsup told Mark Geragos, the trainer's attorney, that jailing Anderson might test "how loyal your client wants to be."

Alsup rejected Geragos' plea that testifying before the grand jury would violate a deal Anderson struck last December to plead guilty in the BALCO case. Geragos, who said he would appeal the judge's order, said Anderson specifically stated he would not cooperate with the government as part of the deal.

Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press

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