Two potential Clemens jurors are Eagles fans

WASHINGTON - The attorney for Roger Clemens gave his strongest hint yet that the former baseball star may not testify in his trial on charges of lying to Congress about using performance-enhancing drugs as he pressed potential jurors not to hold Clemens' silence against him.

A retiree was dismissed after he said he said he would suspect Clemens was guilty if he chose not to testify.

"I would kind of feel like what the government says might be true," the man said.

Clemens watched without speaking during three days of intense questioning of 50 potential jurors that qualified 35 people for potential service.

One man who qualified just retired as a chef for the hometown Redskins, even though he said his football allegiance came from his hometown of Philadelphia.

"I'm a die-hard Eagles fan, but Dan Snyder was there with money," the man said of the Redskins owner to laughter in the courtroom. He also played football at Syracuse and said he remembered the late football star Lyle Alzado speaking out against steroid use in the days he played, but now he doesn't feel you can tell who is using.

Another woman who made it through to the next phase was also an Eagles fan, although she's a lifelong resident of Washington.

She said she liked the team because of quarterback Michael Vick, who was convicted for his involvement in dogfighting. "I thought he was done wrong," she said.

One woman who made it through to the next round is a former attorney turned yoga instructor who said she saw some of Clemens' congressional testimony and thought "he seemed sincere."

The judge asked her, "Have you ever heard about performance-enhancing drugs in yoga?" She said no, "we tend to be vegetarians."

Another potential juror, a lawyer for the Federal Communications Commission, said her husband told her it looked as if she was being called for the Clemens jury and she got him confused with all-star Pittsburgh Pirates rightfielder Roberto Clemente, who she apparently didn't realize died in 1972.

Opening statements in the case are expected to begin on July 13.

If convicted on all charges, Clemens faces as long as 30 years in prison and a $1.5 million fine.