Former Orioles shortstop Miguel Tejada is expected to plead guilty in U.S. District Court in Washington this morning to a charge that he lied to congressional investigators about illegal performance-enhancing drugs - telling them he knew nothing though he had discussed steroids with an Oakland Athletics teammate and paid him for human growth hormone.
According to a criminal information document filed by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia yesterday, Tejada provided "misrepresentations" to staffers from the congressional Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on Aug. 26, 2005. It was part of the perjury investigation of former Oriole Rafael Palmeiro.
The document in the misdemeanor charge can be filed only with the consent of the defendant, meaning Tejada likely has reached an agreement with prosecutors and subsequently is expected to enter a guilty plea before U.S. Magistrate Alan Kay at 11 a.m. today.
The document filing came one day after Major League Baseball was rocked with another steroid scandal when New York Yankees superstar third baseman Alex Rodriguez admitted to ESPN that he took illegal performance enhancers for three years while with the Texas Rangers.
Tejada could face up to a $1,000 fine and one year in federal prison, according to the United States Code, though federal sentencing guidelines suggest a term of probation to six months served.
"It's a definitive signal that he's pleading guilty and likely cooperating," said former Baltimore federal prosecutor Andrew C. White, who is not involved in the case but was making suppositions based on information provided to him.
In such a case, White said, Tejada could have been charged with the felony of lying to Congress, so the lesser misdemeanor suggests the agreement includes an obligation to "cooperate against other persons."
A conviction, however, could jeopardize Tejada's right to work in the country, White said. Misdemeanor offenses routinely lead to deportation for non-U.S. citizens, and Tejada has only Dominican Republic citizenship.
Anyone living in this country who is not a citizen "and has been convicted of a particular crime in the United States, that person could be and may be subject to removal proceedings," said Ernestine Fobbs, a spokeswoman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Tejada, his agent and his attorney did not return phone calls.
