The rocket in court
Double play: Roger Clemens pleads not guilty, heads off to golf
Roger Clemens was polite but resolute when asked for his plea by U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton in federal court this afternoon. "Not guilty, your honor," Clemens said.
With that, a short hearing that Clemens turned into something of a long day was all but done.
His arraignment wasn't scheduled until 2 p.m. EST, but Roger Clemens arrived at the federal courthouse in Washington, D.C. over four hours early on Monday.
Seven-time Cy Young winner Clemens was indicted on Aug. 19 on six felony counts (including perjury), alleging he lied in testimony to Congress in 2008 about his use of illegal performance-enhancing drugs.
If his goal was to beat the packs of paparazzi, he nearly succeeded, with only a couple photographers on the steps to capture Clemens and his Houston lawyer Rusty Hardin.
The New York Times speculated that his early entrance was also used to take advantage of pretrial services, including speaking to Judge Reggie Walton about bail considerations.
If Clemens is sweating this possible jail time, he's not showing it. The New York Daily News reported that Clemens and his wife Debbie were entered to play in the Golf.com World Amateur Handicap Championship in Myrtle Beach (a quick flight from DC) a few hours after the arraignment.