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Old 01-08-2008, 07:01 AM
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Default O/T - Clemens On 60 Minutes

Posted By: Todd Schultz

I'd bet heavily that he hasn't taken a polygraph. Any such test would be discoverable in the defamation action. His attorney is far too calculating to have made that mistake.

I agree with Tom, there are good reasons why polygraphs are inadmissible and I would love to cross-examine any polygraph examiner. So Roger's failure to jump right into that fire means little to me. Personally, I can easily imagine a scenario where Roger, as a lay person, initially thought it a great idea to go the lie detector route, but had his lawyer tell him how it was largely a no-win situation--fail it and you're cooked, pass it and people will claim the test was unreliable or the examiner hand-picked.

I do not believe his interview to be all that telling. Yes he certainly looked uncomfortable and fidgety, but he also seemed genuinely frustrated and angry. He maintained eye contact for the most part, and he looked to me anxious to interrupt Wallace and almost as if he was gritting his teeth to maintain composure on occasion. I've had clients look pitiful in uncontested default proceedings where I am spoon-feeding the questions. Some people get nervous and stumble all over themselves in certain situations, and would look dubious even telling you that the sun rises in the East. I've also had other folks who I damn well knew were lying and looked as calm and believable as your grandma. Of course, you just feed those types with more rope to hang themselves, either their own inconsistent statements or other evidence. In that regard, Wallace could have done a better job asking questions that could be tested through other testimony or evidence, pinning him down on how frequently McNamee gave him his B12 and pain shots and who was present, where, etc., asking why such innocent shots were administered in his apartment and not at the team's facilities, i.e. stuff that is somewhat ancillary but which can lead to other avenues of truth finding. Of course, that is not necessarily his job and he had time and editorial constraints, but it would have been nice.

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