A citizen lies to Congress and gets a term in jail. A congressman lies to us and gets another term in office.
But if this summer of jurisprudence has taught us one thing, it should be that justice is an emotional hypothesis whereas the law is more objective. Everyone in this country should be thankful for that, because it always should be the precise application of law that distinguishes between conviction and acquittal in a criminal case -- not getting justice.
It doesn't matter what endless talking heads personally think of Roger Clemens. It doesn't matter if the public overwhelmingly believes the account of Clemens' former trainer: that the seven-time Cy Young Award winner willingly and knowingly used illegally obtained performance-enhancing drugs. It doesn't matter if common sense suggests that an already admittedly broke federal government shouldn't spend millions on the prosecution of a ballplayer simply because he might not have been exactly forthright in answering Congress' questions.
The law can't be disregarded for the sake of currying public favor.
Clemens' federal perjury trial started opening arguments Wednesday. Most probably think it's a waste of time and taxpayer dollars, again digging up skeletons from baseball's steroids-induced past. I'm sure many greeted the first day of the high-profile proceedings with a sigh or yawn. They're bored with the steroids story as well as its legacy. Turn the page. Move on. • Update: Clemens case ends in mistrial
But the Justice Department did the right thing. Let the case go to trial. Let them both have their say. Let the jury decide. Let the rule of law dictate the final verdict.
Justice will come with the Hall of Fame voting.
I'm a voter. I've made my position quite clear. None of these guys is getting my vote. I believe they're dirty.
I can't help but think the game was so saturated with steroids and "uppers" or amphetamines that those 15 years and pretty much every monumental individual historical achievement come with a pharmaceutical stamp. That's where the justice as payback comes.
But justice has nothing do with this trial.
It's simple. Did Clemens break the specific law consistent with the level of charges brought forth by the government?
As public servants, we hope prosecutors don't succumb to the sometimes inflammatory whims of public sentiment when determining how aggressively they'll pursue a criminal case. That's how the Florida prosecutors screwed up the Casey Anthony matter. Obsessed with finding justice for a dead little girl, they ignored the law consistent with the evidence they could prove beyond reasonable doubt and overcharged the defendant.
Anyone who thinks convicting Clemens of perjuring himself before Congress somehow makes amends for baseball's blind-eye handling of the steroids scandal is missing the point. Same as the Barry Bonds federal perjury case earlier this year, it can't be about attaching a condemned face to baseball's black eye to appease those still irritated over the entire mess.
This trial is strictly about legality. The Hall voters will take care of the justice.
