WASHINGTON—A federal judge on Monday said the shaky testimony of baseball pitcher Andy Pettitte against former teammate Roger Clemens could remain in the case when jurors decide whether Mr. Clemens lied to Congress about performance-enhancing drugs.
Mr. Pettitte, a close friend of Mr. Clemens who played with him on the New York Yankees and Houston Astros, had told investigators that in 1999 or 2000 Mr. Clemens admitted taking human growth hormone. On the witness stand last month, however, Mr. Pettitte backed off that claim, saying there was a 50-50 chance he misunderstood Mr. Clemens.
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Andy Pettitte leaves court after testifying in the Roger Clemens trial earlier this month.
The defense team sought to strike Mr. Pettitte's testimony about that conversation, saying Mr. Pettitte's account of the conversation was so uncertain it shouldn't be part of the case. Under the law, the standard for such evidence is whether it is at least 51% more likely true than not. Prosecutors argued the jurors should be allowed to consider the testimony and decide for themselves.
At a hearing on the issue Monday, the judge agreed with the government.
"It is for the jury to assess which version of the testimony Mr. Pettitte gave is an accurate representation of what Mr. Clemens said to him," Judge Reggie Walton ruled.
The decision means that Mr. Pettitte's testimony—once considered a pillar of the prosecution—will be used by both sides. Much of the rest of Mr. Pettitte's answers consist of him denying he saw or suspected Mr. Clemens used performance-enhancing drugs.
With Mr. Pettitte's account weighed down by uncertainty, the government's case now rests largely on the credibility of Mr. Clemens's former strength trainer, Brian McNamee. A former New York City police officer and admitted supplier of performance-enhancing drugs to athletes, Mr. McNamee is expected to take the stand later Monday.
Mr. Clemens, a seven-time Cy Young Award winner, is charged with lying when he told Congress in 2008 he never used human growth hormone or steroids.
Prosecutors say they can prove those denials were lies, in part because Mr. McNamee saved items he says he used while injecting Mr. Clemens with performance-enhancing drugs. According to prosecutors, some of the materials tested positive for the drugs as well as Mr. Clemens's DNA.
Mr. Clemens's lawyers are expected to hammer away at Mr. McNamee's credibility. They have referred to the saved medical items as "a mixed-up hodgepodge of garbage'' and said the materials were contaminated by Mr. McNamee.
Mr. Clemens says Mr. McNamee injected him with vitamin B12 and the anesthetic lidocaine.
Write to Devlin Barrett at devlin.barrett@wsj.com
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