November 16, 2009
IFBB professional bodybuilder Guy Ducasse was sentenced to one month imprisonment and 400 hours community service after pleading guilty to steroid distribution. United States District Judge Claire Eagan emphatically rejected the prosecution’s argument that Ducasse was “no different than any other drug dealer and should be treated accordingly.” Federal prosecutors had asked Judge Eagan to put Ducasse in jail for 15-21 months.
Guy Ducasse’s attorney, public defender Stephen Greubel, skillfully used testimony by the prosecution’s star witness to lay the groundwork for requesting a reduced sentence of zero months for his client. Greubel argued that the use of anabolic steroids was expected and required to compete as a professional bodybuilder in non-steroid tested competitions. Therefore, Ducasse’s personal use of steroids and his distribution of steroids to other bodybuilders did NOT result in “the corruption of sports or athletes.”
October 24, 2009
Dr. Jesse Haggard is quickly becoming a martyr to the cause of medical steroids. There is no better example of the excesses of the modern day steroid witch-hunt than the federal government’s prosecution of the Arizona naturopathic physician.
Dr. Haggard is being prosecuted by the federal government for allegedly prescribing anabolic steroids “outside the usual course of professional practice” and “not for legitimate medical purposes”. Yet Dr. Haggard not only met the standard of care but often established the medical standard of care with off-label prescribing of anabolic steroids supported by scientific and clinical evidence.
In a recent communication, Dr. Haggard warned healthcare practitioners that evidence-based prescribing of anabolic steroids can not be advised in the present-day climate of steroid hysteria. Haggard advocates steroid law reform as the solution that will allow medical practitioners to prescribe anabolic steroids more freely, and without restraint, in appropriate medical conditions Read more
October 7, 2009
United States Magistrate Judge David Baker refused to release Dr. Jesse Haggard at a detention hearing at the U.S. Courthouse in Orlando. Dr. Haggard has been detained without bail as a flight risk pending his transfer to Mobile, Alabama sometime in the next 10-14 days. Federal prosecutors argued that Haggard knew he was under federal investigation at the time he moved to Costa Rica and that Haggard knew he should have surrendered based on postings on his personal blog and legal documents he signed before he left. Magistrate Judge Baker was not influenced by defense arguments that Haggard voluntarily surrendered and therefore was not a flight risk.
The blockbuster revelation during court proceedings on Wednesday was that the federal government “hired” local news media to actively assist them with their investigation of Dr. Jesse Haggard and Revolution Medical Center. A source with knowledge of the court proceedings indicated that the government worked with television crews in Phoenix to conduct an undercover investigation to gather evidence against Haggard.
The television news station was not identified. Suggestions that the federal government has paid news organizations to conduct their steroid witch-hunt are highly disturbing.
October 7, 2009
Dr. Jesse Haggard will appear today before United States Magistrate Judge David Baker in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida in his first court appearance since voluntarily surrendering to federal authorities on Friday. Haggard will be represented by federal public defender Clarence W. Counts, Jr.
Dr. Haggard had been living in Costa Rica for over a year preparing a scientific defense to support the therapeutic use of anabolic steroids during the course of his medical practice. The naturopathic physician moved to Costa Rica with his family to escape the hysteria perpetuated by the local media. Haggard was harrassed and practically stalked by ABC15 “investigative journalist” Josh Bernstein in a sensationalistic tabloid-style witch-hunt. Haggard wrote and published the book “Demystifying Steroids“, a patient and practictioner guide to anabolic steroid therapy, while in Costa Rica.
Although Haggard has been called a fugitive by federal prosecutors, this may not be entirely accurate. Haggard had travelled and resided in Costa Rica for approximately eight months prior to being indicted on federal steroid charges. Furthermore, Dr. Haggard or Timothy Holt (Haggard’s legal representation at the time) were never served or shown a warrant for his arrest. Apparently, the government only shared the warrant with ABC15’s Josh Bernstein.
September 28, 2009
Dr. Jesse Haggard, the former clinical director of Revolution Medical Centers, will voluntarily surrender to federal agents in Florida on Friday, October 2, 2009. Haggard will be taken into custody at the Orlando International Airport and transported to Alabama where he faces steroid distribution charges.
Dr. Haggard was indicted as part of the Applied Pharmacy Services criminal investigation announced in January 2009. The government has accused Haggard of prescribing anabolic steroids “outside the usual course of professional practice” and “not for legitimate medical purposes”. However, unlike other doctors similarly prosecuted, Haggard had an indisputable doctor-patient relationship with all of his patients that included comprehensive laboratory testing; Haggard never prescribed anabolic steroids over the internet or to any patients not evaluated during an in-person medical examination.
August 12, 2009
IFBB pro bodybuilder Guy Ducasse pleaded guilty to one count of distributing the anabolic steroid Proviron (mesterolone). Ducasse testified that he gave the steroid to his friend without charge. The bodybuilder did NOT admit to selling steroids in the plea agreement (”Local bodybuilder pleads guilty to distributing steroids,” August 12).
A local bodybuilder tied to an ongoing steroid drug ring pleaded guilty to one count of distributing drugs in Tulsa federal court Wednesday morning.
During a hearing before U.S. District Judge Claire Eagan Wednesday, Guy Ducasse, 46, pleaded guilty to distributing steroids in 2006, He testified in court that he gave an anabolic steroid to his dentist, who he said was also his friend. However, he denied selling the drugs to the dentist.
The government is not required to prove that Ducasse sold steroids in order to convict him on a federal steroid distribution charge. Steroid distribution, with or without financial compensation, is a criminal violation of the Anabolic Steroid Control Act. Yet, Assistant United States Attorney Janet Reincke insisted that Ducasse sold steroids. Read more
August 11, 2009
Kelly Blair, the owner of now-defunct 1-on-1 Elite Personal Fitness near Houston, has filed a defamation lawsuit against the authors and publisher of “American Icon: The Fall of Roger Clemens and the Rise of Steroids in America’s Pastime” on the eve of his grand jury testimony in the Roger Clemens perjury investigation. The book was written by the New York Daily News investigative journalism team consisting of Michael O’Keefe, Christian Red, Teri Thompson and Nathaniel Vinton. The suit also names the publisher (Knopf Doubleday) and one previously anonymous source (Robin Dobbins) cited in the book (”Authors and Publisher of Baseball Steroids Book Sued for Defamation, According to The Gibson Law Firm,” August 10).
Blair’s attorney, Jason A. Gibson, of The Gibson Law Firm, stated, “As the lawsuit alleges, Kelly Blair was maliciously and recklessly defamed by the authors and publishers of this book and at least one dubious source whose false allegations they published. Kelly looks forward to his day in court on this matter. In the meantime, he looks forward to testifying tomorrow before the grand jury in Washington.”
Kelly Blair’s lawsuit alleges that Robin Dobbins is responsible for the information in the book that links Blair directly to the sale of anabolic steroids and performance enhancing drugs (PEDs) to Major League Baseball (MLB) players Read more
August 7, 2009
Swedish police have exonerated IFBB pro bodybuilder Irene Andersen of steroid distribution charges. A May 6, 2009 news story published by the Swedish newspaper Expressen.se had implicated Andersen in the possession of anabolic steroids with the intent to resale and distribute. The Swedish newspaper has since admitted to Andersen’s attorney that the sole basis of this allegation was based on a single confidential female source. The source has since been discredited and appears to have been motivated by a personal vendetta against Andersen.
MESO-Rx has obtained police documents confirming that Irene Andersen was NOT involved in steroid distribution. Irene Andersen was interrogated by police in Sweden during a series of steroid raids during the week of April 20th, 2009. Police interrogated twelve top Swedish bodybuilders, including at least two IFBB pro bodybuilders, during an exploratory investigation into steroid distribution in the region.
The raids were not based on any evidence of steroid distribution but primarily on “muscle profiling“. Swedish police targeted bodybuilders for suspicion of distribution based on physical appearance. The raids did not result in any distribution charges among those interrogated; Swedish police only discovered personal use quantities of steroids for bodybuilding purposes.
August 6, 2009
FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg identified “enforcement of the law” as the overriding objective of the FDA under her leadership at a presentation for the Food and Drug Law Institute in Washington, D.C. on August 6, 2009.
Hamburg cited the FDA raid of American Cellular Labs and the FDA public health advisory regarding steroids in supplements as examples of the increased enforcement activity by the agency; Hamburg promised additional efforts targeting the “illegal sale of anabolic steroids” sold “under the guise of dietary supplements”.
Hamburg did not specifically identify the Dietary Supplement and Health Education Act (DSHEA) by name in her speech. Nonetheless, her comments may provide some guidance to sports nutrition companies recently affected by increased FDA enforcement and provide clues to the future of DSHEA.
July 31, 2009
Michael Schmidt of the New York Times reported this week that David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez were two of the baseball players who tested positive for for anabolic steroids as part of Major League Baseball’s “non-disciplinary and anonymous” steroid testing in 2003.
Jon Pessah, a senior writer at ESPN Magazine, responded that the “real questions about steroids” raised by the New York Times story involve the illegal activity that resulted not only in the government seizure of the list but also the subsequent leaking of the names.
The seizure of the list is the subject of a lawsuit by the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) against the federal government. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals imposed a gag order on all parties involved in the case preventing the leaking of names under the penalty of contempt of court.
Jon Pessah, writing for True/Slant, questioned whether reporters are themselves breaking the law in their aggressive purusit of steroid users in Major League Baseball (”The Real Questions About Steroids,” July 30). Read more
July 29, 2009
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a Public Health Advisory (PHA) warning consumers to avoid using bodybuilding supplements claiming to contain “steroids”, “steroid-like substances”, “steroid alternatives” and “hormone products”. The FDA warning failed to give guidance on the specific product ingredients that were problematic. The extremely broad language cast suspicion upon all “body building supplements” marketed for performance enhancement because they might contain synthetic steroids (”FDA recommends that consumers should not use body building products marketed as containing steroids or steroid-like substances,” July 28).
- “marketed as containing steroids or steroid-like substances”
- “marketed for body building and increasing muscle mass”
- “marketed as alternatives to anabolic steroids for increasing muscle mass and strength”
- “promoted to athletes to improve sports performance and to aid in recovery from training and sporting events”
The target was ostensibly illegal synthetic steroids that are not compliant with the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA). However, the FDA news releases and statements appears to demonize ALL steroid products including those that are legally sold and marketed as dietary supplements under DSHEA. Read more
July 26, 2009
Russ Walker, a security police officer at a high-security government nuclear weapons facility, was fired after testing positive for anabolic steroids. Walker attributes the positive steroid test to his use of the over-the-counter supplement identified as “DecaVol” manufactured by Advanced Muscle Science (AMS).
Russ Walker was a model employee at Wackenhut Services Inc. Oak Ridge (WSI-OR). WSI Oak Ridge is the private security contractor for the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant in Tennessee where nuclear warheads are manufactured for the U.S. military. Walker was asked to undergo steroid testing based on unspecified probable cause that he was in violation of company and Department of Energy policy.
Walker’s employment was terminated after he tested positive for anabolic steroids. Walker is one of several WSI-OR security police officers who have blamed positive steroid test results on the use of over-the-counter supplements Read more
July 25, 2009
FDA Special Agent Jeff Novitzky, the agent who has become the face of the federal government witch-hunt against steroid users in professional sports during the BALCO scandal, has move his attention to investigating dietary supplement companies suspected of selling designer anabolic steroids.
Novitzky’s latest steroid investigation targeted two popular products sold and marketed as dietary supplements, “Tren Xtreme” and “Mass Xtreme”. These products were manufactured by American Cellular Labs Inc. (ACL) and sold exclusively through Max Muscle Sports Nutrition (MMSN) stores and via the ACL website (”Two Dietary Supplements Said to Contain Steroids,” July 23).
The exact nature of the business relationship between ACL and MMSN is unclear. Maurice Sandoval, the owner of the Max Muscle San Francisco franchise and the Regional Marketing Director for Max Muscle, was identified as the chief executive of ACL in a government affidavit. Sandoval told the New York Times that he sold ACL in 2008. ACL, Max Muscle San Francisco, and Sandoval’s residence were targets of search warrants executed on July 23, 2009.
The FDA investigation did not involve any steroid contaminants or undisclosed anabolic steroids. Federal investigators specifically targeted the openly listed ingredients in Tren Xtreme and Mass Xtreme commonly referred to as “Tren” and “Madol”, respectively. Read more
July 23, 2009
United States Attorney General Eric Holder praised the Justice Department’s use of terrorism laws to disrupt the illegal distribution of human growth hormone (hGH) during his remarks at a Justice Department leadership conference. Holder celebrated the use of the Patriot Act to eliminate a top supplier of performance enhancing drugs (PEDs). The Patriot Act law “permitted” the United States to pursue an international biopharmaceutical company and seize millions of dollars “physically located” in another sovereign country.
The successful asset forfeiture codenamed Operation Honor Student resulted in the forfeiture of $2.7 million dollars by Lei Jin, PhD and his company Genescience Pharmaceutical (GeneSci). Jin and GeneSci were indicted as part of Operation Raw Deal in 2007. The defendants were charged with illegally marketing and distributing human growth hormone over the internet to bodybuilders, athletes, and pharmacies Read more
July 22, 2009
Oklahoma law enforcement has arrested numerous amateur and professional bodybuilders in an ongoing investigation into the distribution of anabolic steroids that started in December 2007. Special Agent R. Brian Surber, of the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control (OBNDD), has spearheaded the investigation that has resulted in numerous arrests. It has also resulted in the steroid raid of a U.S. Secret Service Agent that did not result in any arrests or criminal charges.
The Oklahoma investigation may be setting a trend in law enforcement with the profiling of bodybuilders as users of anabolic steroids. Special Agent Brian Surber has seemingly perpetuated “physique profiling” in several steroid cases. Surber has allegedly shown a bias towards using bodybuilder-type physiques as putative evidence of anabolic steroid use. He has used photographs of a suspect’s muscular physique as part of the probable cause to support the acquisition of search warrants (”Multiple bodybuilders busted for anabolic steroids in Oklahoma – more busts on the way“, April 17).
As I said, I’ve spoken to [Brian Surber] (*now on multiple occasions) and can tell you that he’s very sharp – as part of his probable cause warrants, he even includes pictures of the “alleged” steroid users. Think about that for a second…those pictures of Darrell Terrell and Sherry Smith, which were all over the Internet showing off their physiques – ultimately helped lead to their downfall, and were used as part of the probable cause to issue a search warrant for steroids on them.
It should be noted that the Oklahoma investigation has not used “physique profiling” as a primary predictor of steroid use. Physique as a criterion for obtaining search warrants appears to be one among many factors. However, the emergence of physique profiling in the war on steroids should serve as warning to bodybuilders who have not traditionally been subject to discrimination by law enforcement based upon their physical appearance.
OBNDD Special Agent Brian Surber is NOT a rogue agent blatantly violating the law in a witch-hunt against bodybuilders. Surber is an accomplished attorney intimately familiar with search and seizure law with extensive “in the field” experience. Accordingly, potential efforts by the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics to profile bodybuilders should be taken very seriously.
R. Brian Surber was formerly the Deputy General Counsel for the OBNDD, a prosecutor for the Eighth District Drug Task Force in Oklahoma, a special assistant attorney general for the State of Oklahoma multi-county grand jury division and a special prosecutor for the Oklahoma County District Attorney’s Office. Surber has also authored two books, “The Investigator’s Guide to Search and Seizure” and “The Prosecutor’s Guide to Fourth and Fifth Amendment Motions to Suppress“.
At one time, most of Surber’s efforts went toward legitimately making our communities safer; Surber received considerably accolades as he helped thwart murderers, shut down methamphetamine labs, and catch rapists.
[Brian Surber] has even done undercover work, posing as a hitman. And for all of the people who say “these guys should be going after meth labs” – you can check Agent Surber’s record, because he’s done that too. He’s even caught rapists (check out this story – you’ll need to scroll down and read the letter he wrote, detailing how he solved a rape case from another state!).
For whatever reason, the focus of Surber’s considerable knowledge and experience seems to have been diverted to the the investigation and arrest of bodybuilders for non-violent crimes involving anabolic steroid possession and distribution.
Given the role of Brian Surber in the Oklahoma steroid investigations and the use of “physique profiling”, it worthwhile to review some of his recommendations and advice aimed at law enforcement with special considerations as to how it could apply to bodybuilders.
An article written by Surber for the Oklahoma State Game Warden Association may provide some insight into how law enforcement officials can attempt to accomodate the Fourth Amendment when using a bodybuilder-type physique as putative evidence of steroid use in establishing probable cause (”Search and Seizure For The Oklahoma Game Warden“, 2005).
A game warden needs probable cause to arrest and probable cause to search. Forget all of the hoopla surrounding the definition of probable cause. It is simply a FAIR PROBABILITY. Just ask yourself, With the facts I know, is there a fair probability that: (1) I’ll find some evidence, (2) the suspect committed the crime (i.e., if you hear a high powered rifle shot in late November, forty-five minutes later the suspect walks out of the woods with blood on his hands and pants, is there a FAIR PROBABILITY that he shot a deer?).
The important standard of evidence for probable cause involves “fair probability”. How could Brian Surber’s interpretation of “fair probability” be applied to the profiling of bodybuilders?
Is there a fair probability that bodybuilders competing in the NPC and/or IFBB uses anabolic steroids? Is there a fair probability that the bodybuilders committed a crime to obtain anabolic steroids? E.g. if you see an extremely muscular and well-defined bodybuilder compete in an IFBB or NPC competition, is there a fair probability that he uses steroids?
Is you see any big, muscular and lean individual walking out of a commercial gym in a tank-top, is there a “fair probability” that he (or she) uses steroids? Then, why not use his (or her) bodybuilder-type physique as part of the probable cause for a search warrant?
Brian Surber’s interpretation of “reasonable suspicion” sets an even lower standard of evidence as the requirement to detain an individual.
You need a reasonable suspicion to detain a suspect or stop his vehicle. The courts have defined this as “much less demanding than probable cause and considerably less than a preponderance.” That means that your suspicion could be flat out wrong a considerable majority of the time. That is not much guidance and this is a tricky area of law. You should be okay if (1) you are suspicious, and (2) you can articulate why (i.e., more than a hunch).
Surber’s interpretation would suggest that it is acceptable for law enforcement to detain bodybuilders and/or stop their vehicles if the officer can make up (and “articulate”) a good reason. After all, there is apparently nothing to lose since law enforcement can be wrong most of the time.
Next, Surber offers some tips for “articulating probable cause and reasonable suspicion”.
Tips for Articulating Probable Cause and Reasonable Suspicion:
Expert Testimony: Rather than a judge or prosecutor telling you whether you have probable cause or a reasonable suspicion, you are more equipped to tell them. [...] Here is the trick: You must be able to describe to your prosecutor or judge why you thought this activity was suspicious. For instance, if you are set up on surveillance, don’t just say that I observed the defendant’s vehicle traveling at a suspicious speed. Rather, say that you have observed dozens of vehicles traveling down this road, farmers and local residents travel at approximately X speed, this vehicle was in an area known for road hunting, the vehicle traveled at a speed consistent with deer poaching and the occupants appeared to be scanning the clearings, etc.
How would a law enforcement investigator potentially utilize Brian Surber’s “tips” to target bodybuilders with probable cause?
Brian Surber provided us with an example when he wrote the following in support of a search warrant leading to the seizure of three computers during the Maryland SWAT team raid of a United States Secret Service Agent. Surber “articulates” the belief that bodybuilders’ use of computers to communicate via email, discussion of steroids using the Internet, and/or storage of pictures of themselves with other steroid-using bodybuilders are consistent with steroid use.
I have also learned from other experience steroid investigators that bodybuilders and anabolic steroid users abusing performance enhancing drugs utilize personal computers as a form of communication. I have also learned that individuals I have investigated for steroids in Tulsa were in fact communicating over their computers regarding anabolic steroids, growth hormone, and other performance enhancing drugs. I have also found in my investigation that the users of anabolic steroids often maintain photographs (image files) on their personal computers and also found these photographs are relevant to establish relationships between the co-conspirators.
Regrettably, Brian Surber has gone from a prosecutor and agent who legitimately made our communities safer by putting violent criminals behind bars to someone who spends an ever increasing amount of time trying to put non-violent bodybuilders behind bars on steroid crimes.
The flawed steroid laws are ultimately to blame for the colossal waste of taxpayer resources used for steroid investigations; however the police perpetuation of physique profiling, and the inevitable false positives, in the war on steroids is reason for concern. Profiling by law enforcement could have particularly dire consequences for a marginalized bodybuilding subculture.
