U.S. says Bonds failed steroid test before record

By Adam Tanner

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Baseball home run king Barry Bonds tested positive for steroids in November 2000, months before his record breaking 73-home run season, U.S. prosecutors said on Thursday.

The allegation came in a legal filing in his steroid perjury case which referred to Bonds' long-time trainer, Greg Anderson.

"At trial, the government's evidence will show that Bonds received steroids from Anderson in the period before the November 2000 positive drug test, and that evidence raises the inference that Anderson gave Bonds the steroids that caused him to test positive in November 2000," U.S. Attorney Joseph Russoniello wrote.

The filing twice referred to a failed drug test in 2001 as well as a failed test in 2000, but prosecutors later said there was a failed test only in 2000. "It's a typo. We'll file a corrected copy tomorrow," said Josh Eaton, a spokesman for Russoniello. "Nothing nefarious is going on here."

Acting for the U.S. government, Russoniello made the assertion in a document that asked a federal court to reject Bonds' motion last month to dismiss the charges that he lied about past steroid use.

Dennis Riordan, one of Bonds' lawyers, said the slugger's defense team would respond to the filing by next Thursday and declined to comment immediately.

In December, the record seven-time National League Most Valuable Player pleaded not guilty to lying to a federal grand jury in 2003 when he denied using performance-enhancing drugs.

The left fielder testified in the BALCO sports steroid case, which ended up jailing his personal trainer, Anderson, and Victor Conte, head of the BALCO lab near San Francisco.