Andy Pettitte's "50-50" Testimony - Roger Clemens' Trial

Federal prosecutors in Roger Clemens' perjury trial may have made a costly error after Andy Pettitte testified that he was "50-50" about a conversation he had with Clemens regarding his use of human growth hormone.

Under questioning from prosecutors, Pettitte testified that Clemens had told him he had used HGH.  He later testified that he might have misunderstood Clemens, and Clemens actually might have said it was his wife who had used the substance.  When asked on cross-examination if he was "50-50" that he had misunderstood Clemens, Pettitte replied, "I'd say that's fair."

In light of Pettitte's "50-50" comment, the defense moved to strike the portion of his testimony regarding his conversation with Clemens as insufficiently definitive – essentially that it is too uncertain to prove anything.  Pettitte's testimony is relevant if (a) it has any tendency to make a fact more or less probable than it would be without the evidence; and (b) the fact is of consequence