Greg Anderson

Greg Anderson
Born:	February 1966 San Francisco, California
Charges:	Distribution of anabolic steroids, Money laundering, Contempt of court
Sentence:	3 months (BALCO), Multiple contempt sentences
Facility:	FCI Dublin
Status:	Released

Greg F. Anderson (born February 1966) is an American personal trainer best known for his work with baseball player Barry Bonds and his central role in the BALCO steroids scandal that rocked professional sports in the early 2000s. Anderson pleaded guilty in 2005 to conspiracy to distribute anabolic steroids and money laundering as part of the investigation into the Bay Area Laboratory Co-operative (BALCO), receiving a sentence of three months in prison followed by three months of home confinement. However, Anderson would become even more notorious for his steadfast refusal to testify against his lifelong friend Barry Bonds, resulting in multiple contempt of court citations and a total of more than a year spent in federal custody for refusing to cooperate with federal grand juries investigating whether Bonds committed perjury about his steroid use. Anderson's unwavering loyalty to Bonds—he never testified or spoke publicly about Bonds' alleged steroid use—made him a controversial figure who prioritized personal friendship over legal obligations.

Summary

The BALCO scandal exposed the widespread use of performance-enhancing drugs in elite sports and implicated numerous prominent athletes, including baseball players Barry Bonds, Jason Giambi, and Gary Sheffield, track stars Marion Jones and Tim Montgomery, and NFL players. At the center of the scandal was a small laboratory in Burlingame, California, founded by Victor Conte, that developed and distributed undetectable steroids to athletes seeking competitive advantages. Greg Anderson served as a crucial link between BALCO and his childhood friend Barry Bonds, one of baseball's greatest players and the all-time home run leader.

Anderson's role in the scandal was significant but not as a mastermind. He was a personal trainer who allegedly provided steroids and other performance-enhancing substances to Bonds and other athletes. When federal investigators unraveled BALCO's operations, Anderson pleaded guilty and served a brief prison sentence. But his refusal to testify about Bonds transformed him from a supporting player into a central figure in the years-long investigation into whether Bonds had lied to a federal grand jury about his steroid use.

Anderson's willingness to go to prison repeatedly rather than testify against Bonds became a story unto itself—a tale of unusual loyalty that some viewed as admirable personal integrity and others as obstruction of justice. Whatever the characterization, Anderson never broke his silence, and to this day has never publicly discussed his relationship with Bonds or his alleged role in providing the slugger with performance-enhancing drugs.

Background

Early Life and Friendship with Bonds

Greg Anderson was born in February 1966 in the San Francisco Bay Area. He and Barry Bonds became friends as children when they played middle-school baseball together in California. This childhood friendship would endure for decades and ultimately place Anderson at the center of one of the biggest scandals in sports history.

Anderson pursued a career as a personal trainer, eventually working with elite athletes. His training business brought him into contact with BALCO and its founder, Victor Conte, who was developing cutting-edge (and illegal) performance-enhancing substances marketed to athletes seeking competitive advantages. Anderson became one of the trainers who allegedly distributed BALCO's products to clients, most notably Barry Bonds.

Connection to BALCO

The Bay Area Laboratory Co-operative (BALCO) was founded by Victor Conte in 1984, ostensibly as a legitimate sports nutrition company. In reality, BALCO developed and distributed designer steroids, including a substance known as "the clear" (tetrahydrogestrinone or THG), specifically designed to evade detection by anti-doping tests. BALCO's clients included numerous elite athletes across multiple sports.

Anderson served as a connection between BALCO and Barry Bonds, who by the early 2000s was in his late thirties and entering what would become the most prolific home run hitting phase of his career. Bonds's remarkable late-career power surge generated speculation about performance-enhancing drug use, speculation that intensified after the BALCO scandal broke.

Indictment, Prosecution, and Sentencing

BALCO Investigation

Federal investigators began examining BALCO in 2002 after receiving a tip about the company's activities. The investigation expanded to encompass numerous athletes and their trainers, including Anderson. In 2004, Anderson was indicted on charges related to distributing steroids and money laundering.

Guilty Plea and Initial Sentence

In July 2005, Anderson pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute anabolic steroids and one count of money laundering. Under the plea agreement, he was sentenced to three months in federal prison followed by three months of home confinement. He served this sentence at a federal facility.

As part of the BALCO investigation, Barry Bonds testified before a federal grand jury in December 2003. During his testimony, Bonds denied knowingly using steroids, claiming that if Anderson had given him any prohibited substances, he was unaware of their true nature. This testimony would later form the basis for perjury charges against Bonds.

Contempt of Court

After completing his BALCO sentence, Anderson was subpoenaed to testify before federal grand juries investigating whether Bonds had committed perjury in his 2003 testimony. Anderson refused to testify, invoking his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination and, when granted immunity that eliminated that protection, simply refusing to answer questions.

On July 5, 2006, U.S. District Judge William Alsup found Anderson in contempt of court for refusing to testify before a federal grand jury. Anderson was denied bail and immediately sent to the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin, California. He was released on July 20, 2006, when that grand jury's term expired without indicting Bonds.

However, a new grand jury was immediately convened to continue the investigation. Anderson was again subpoenaed and again refused to testify. On August 17, 2006, he was again held in contempt and returned to federal custody. This time, his confinement lasted more than a year. Anderson remained in the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin from August 28, 2006, until November 15, 2007—the same day that Bonds was finally indicted on four counts of perjury and one count of obstruction of justice.

With Bonds indicted and no longer under grand jury investigation, there was no longer any basis for holding Anderson in contempt, and he was released.

Final Contempt Citation

Anderson's legal troubles were not quite over. During Bonds's criminal trial in 2011, Anderson was again called to testify and again refused. He was held in contempt once more and served from March 22, 2011, to April 8, 2011, in federal custody before being released when his testimony was no longer needed.

In total, Anderson spent approximately 15-16 months in federal custody for contempt of court—far longer than his original three-month BALCO sentence—solely because of his refusal to testify against Barry Bonds.

Prison Experience

Anderson served all of his federal custody time at the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin, California, a low-security federal prison in the San Francisco Bay Area. The facility's proximity to the Bay Area allowed for family visits during his lengthy contempt confinements.

Anderson's time in custody was unusual in that much of it was for civil contempt rather than criminal conviction. Civil contempt is designed to compel compliance with a court order, not to punish past conduct. In theory, Anderson could have been released at any time by agreeing to testify. His continued refusal demonstrated an extraordinary commitment to his decision not to cooperate against Bonds.

Public Statements and Positions

Greg Anderson has never publicly spoken about his alleged involvement with BALCO, his relationship with Barry Bonds, or his reasons for refusing to testify. His silence has been absolute and has continued to the present day. He has granted no interviews and made no public statements about the scandal that made him infamous.

Anderson's motivations have been the subject of speculation. The most common interpretation is that he prioritized his childhood friendship with Bonds over all other considerations, including his own freedom. Some have characterized this as admirable loyalty; others as obstruction of justice that allowed a potential perjurer to evade accountability for years.

Whatever his reasons, Anderson paid a significant personal price for his silence, spending more than a year of his life in federal custody for contempt rather than provide testimony that prosecutors believed would have helped convict Bonds of perjury. Bonds was eventually convicted of obstruction of justice but acquitted on the perjury charges; the obstruction conviction was later overturned on appeal.

Terminology

• Contempt of Court: Disobedience to a court order or disruption of court proceedings, which can be punished by fines or imprisonment.

• Civil Contempt: Contempt designed to compel compliance with a court order, where the contemnor can be released upon agreeing to comply.

• BALCO: Bay Area Laboratory Co-operative, the company at the center of the steroids scandal that implicated numerous professional athletes.

• Performance-Enhancing Drugs: Substances used by athletes to improve athletic performance, many of which are banned by sports organizations and illegal under federal law.

See also

• Prison Consultants

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Who is Greg Anderson?

Greg Anderson is a personal trainer who became famous for refusing to testify against Barry Bonds in the BALCO steroids investigation, serving time in prison for contempt of court.

Q: Why did Greg Anderson go to prison?

Anderson was imprisoned multiple times for contempt of court after refusing to testify before a grand jury about whether he provided steroids to baseball player Barry Bonds.

Q: How long did Greg Anderson serve in prison?

Anderson served over a year in federal prison for contempt, being jailed and released multiple times as authorities sought his testimony.

Q: What was the BALCO scandal?

BALCO (Bay Area Laboratory Co-operative) was at the center of a major sports doping scandal involving performance-enhancing drugs supplied to elite athletes including baseball and track stars.

Q: Did Greg Anderson ever testify against Barry Bonds?

No, Anderson never testified against Bonds, maintaining his silence throughout multiple prison terms for contempt.