The Barry Bonds trial continued on Wednesday, and after Jeff Novitzky was dismissed, Bonds friend and assistant Steve Hoskins was called to the stand. That’s where he remained at the end of the day, and that’s where he’ll return on Thursday morning.
Barry Bonds Trial Focuses On Steve Hoskins On Wednesday
Much of the morning was devoted to establishing Hoskins’ history with Bonds, and explaining why - in detail - he wound up recording a conversation between himself and Greg Anderson. The tape of that conversation was admitted, and a section of it was played by the prosecution just after lunch. In the muffled tape, Bonds is only specifically mentioned once, but Anderson discusses the injection procedure, and the nature of the substances he’d inject.
Allen Ruby then stepped up to cross-examine the witness, and he spent the afternoon trying to discredit Hoskins. Hoskins and Bonds had a falling out back in 2003 over some dubious business deals, and Ruby suggested that Hoskins was out for revenge. He painted the tape as an attempt at extortion and showed how difficult it is to understand by playing another section, and additionally argued that Hoskins cut a deal with the government to testify against Bonds in exchange for immunity from charges Bonds was filing (for counterfeit merchandise). He also called into question the date of the recording, and highlighted some inconsistencies between Hoskins’ testimony on Wednesday and what he told federal agents in a 2005 interview.
That was about the bulk of what happened on Wednesday, and Hoskins will return to the stand for further cross-examination on Thursday morning. It is worth noting that Hoskins insisted he’s still fond of Bonds, and was only looking out for the player’s best interests. Ruby and the defense clearly don’t want the jury to believe him.
Follow along in this StoryStream for updates, and also get more information from SB Nation Bay Area’s Barry Bonds trial coverage, for which David Fucillo will be live-blogging - and live-tweeting - from the courtroom. You can follow on Twitter @SBNBayArea.
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