Marion Jones, Another 1001 Case

The accusation is that Jones lied to the feds about using “the clear,” an undetectable designed steroid. If the drug is not detectable through any tests and there is no proof she ingested it, how can the feds know for sure what she was given? Did she actually receive any performance enhancing drug from Graham? Even she doesn’t know that.

But, they 1001ed her anyway.

Mr. Garcia stated, "Deceiving federal agents in the course of their investigations disrupts and impedes the proper administration of justice and is a serious matter. Even if the truth is eventually uncovered, the lies throw investigators off track, waste time and resources, and create a real risk of a miscarriage of justice."

Mr. Schools stated, "The federal government will vigorously prosecute individuals who provide false statements to its agents. Individuals who lie to federal agents interfere with the government's ability to investigate criminal conduct and undermine the efficiency of government investigations."

Section 1001 - Worse than Entrapment

Section 1001, which makes lying to a federal official illegal, is a truly vile law that the feds abuse over and over. What makes this one so nasty is that you don’t have to be under oath or even be made aware that you are committing a crime. It can literally be an accidental felony.

Even more insidious is the fact that charges can be brought even if there is no other crime. In other words, you can be charged with lying to cover up a crime that no one has proved was committed. Completely arbitrary, high penalties, and can trap anyone – no wonder the feds love it. John McTiernan is the latest victim:

McTiernan's attorneys also insisted that their client did not understand the consequences of denying his involvement with Pellicano and that his lie, although serious, did not rise to the level of a crime and should not have been charged as a felony.
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McTiernan's lawyers also argued that the FBI all but entrapped their client to mislead them about his use of Pellicano because the wire-tapping that he admitted occurred outside the five-year statute of limitations for that crime.