Roger Clemens Claims He Has Been Overcharged ... and He's Probably Right
In the latest round of court filings, former Red Sox and Yankees Roger Clemens (through his attorneys) protested to the judge that the prosecution had thrown the “kitchen sink” of charges against him. As a former prosecutor, I can say he may have a legitimate grip but that’s the way the criminal process works.
As a prosecutor, you want to indict (or charge) a criminal defendant with as many charges as possible (and that can survive a motion to dismiss). For example, if you have a homicide case that involved a robbery, you would charge murder, felony murder, manslaughter, robbery, grand larceny (if appropriate) and criminal possession of a weapon.
For the prosecution the use of “overcharging” provides useful factors. Remember the prosecution has the burden of proof against a criminal defendant, like Clemens. A multitude of charges will allow a prosecutor to control two important options. First, if a trial or prosecution is going badly, the more serious charges can be dismissed and a plea bargain can be offered to lesser charges. The second is one of simple odds, the more charges submitted to a jury to determine, the higher the chance that they will return a verdict of guilty.
Those are the reasons why the Rocket got the kitchen sink.
My name is Christopher Fusco. I am the managing partner of Callahan & Fusco, LLC with offices in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.