JULY 5, 1994:
Jury selection was delayed until the afternoon after a private session took place in the judge’s chambers where, among other things, Titan attempted to the get the case thrown out because of lack of jurisdiction (they had attempted that several times already).
At 2:07 p.m., jury selection began and by 5:30 p.m., 12 jurors had been randomly selected from a pool of approximately 100 potential jurors who were present. About 35 jurors were selected and eliminated from the jury for various biases or conflicts, such as having relatives who worked for the pharmaceutical company in question or saying that because wrestling matches are predetermined that would affect their judgement or that they were wrestling fans and didn’t want to see the WWF hurt. Judge Mishler asked if anyone had seen the feature about the trial that aired on ESPN the night before. After dismissing several jurors who thought that because wrestling is “fake,” that somehow this trial was, too, the judge said: “Do not question whether wrestling is sports or entertainment… It’s not whether wrestling is pure entertainment or sport. The only issue at stake is the case of distribution and to prove it beyond a reasonable doubt. This is the substance, not whether wrestling is phony or sports or entertainment.”
JULY 6, 1994
Judge Mishler opened by angrily telling Jerry McDevitt that “for the tenth time,” he refused to throw out the case based on the jurisdiction argument.
McDevitt then said he had a “brief statement” and argued that Dr. Wadler should not be allowed to testify for the prosecution as an expert witness because he also testified at the Zahorian trial and such exposure could taint his opinion on this case. The judge angrily interrupted McDevitt, saying, “I thought it was going to be a brief statement” and said he would take up that issue at a later time.
The jury was then let into the court room for the first time. Sean O’Shea made his opening statement, which set forth his outline for the next two weeks and established what he intended to prove. His statement to the jury was as follows (paraphrased, but true to content):
·(“) I am going to tell you the story of Anita Scales, who worked for Titan Sports. Wrestling is the primary business of Titan Sports, which is the largest wrestling company in the country. It promotes shows in the United States and across the world. Anita Scales was the director of compliance and regulations with Titan Sports and she was in a quandary. She heard about a doctor – Dr. Zahorian – selling wrestlers drugs. She heard he was “bad news” and “a real sleazy guy.”
She wanted to get rid of him and thought doing so would be easy since it’s her job. Zahorian, though, called her and told her Hershey is “my town” and wouldn’t take “no” for an answer. So she approached Pat Patterson, the vice president of the company. He said “the boys want Zahorian.” She approached Jay Scarpa, known as Jay Strongbow, who was an executive with Titan. He told her “Zahorian has to be hired because the boys want their candies.” Two important people in the company knew the doctor was giving steroids to wrestling performers so she went to Linda McMahon, number two in the company. Linda listened and said, “Do what Pat tells you.”
Anita Scales was frustrated at being forced to hire a steroid dealer. After a couple of months, she received a phone call from Elizabeth DiFabio, executive assistant to Linda. DiFabio asked Scales to “get rid of Dr. Zahorian” and to make sure he wasn’t at the Dec. 26, 1989 Hershey, Pa. show.
She did not know that Zahorian had been illegally distributing steroids for years to wrestlers who took them to build muscles and that Vince McMahon aided and abetted his distribution and that when she tried to stop it, she was working against a conspiracy to illegally distribute to wrestlers. She did not know that after she had to hire him, she would be told to fire him because of a government investigation that had begun. Now the doctor had to be gotten rid of quickly because the government was about to catch Zahorian and McMahon red-handed. Titan denied involvement when Zahorian was convicted.
This case is about the dark, corrupt underbelly of Titan Sports which pumped up wrestlers for profit. It is about a conspiracy that began long before 1989 and long before Dr. Zahorian was convicted.
The story starts in the early 1980s. Zahorian was a backstage official at Pennsylvania towns – towns important to Titan because they were the cites of TV tapings. The WWF wrestlers were using steroids – illegal to get until prescribed by a doctor for a legitimate medical purpose, so they were difficult to obtain. In November of 1988 they became illegal to prescribe unless for treatment of disease. Zahorian distributed to wrestlers. He was a fan and he knew he was wrong. His practice grew, but he knew it was illegal. As his business grew, he began sending steroids to wrestlers via Federal Express all over the country. It was open and notorious within the WWF. Zahorian set up shop in locker rooms. He’d hand steroids out like Strongbow said, “like candy.” New wrestlers were told by agents “the doctor’s here, need a cash advance?” In other words, do you need money to buy steroids. So McMahon approved explicitly the distributing of these for years. McMahon even became a customer. McMahon bought steroids for Hulk Hogan.
Steroids became a way of life at Titan Sports such that Doug Sages, chief financial officer of Titan Sports, needed a quiet, safe way to buy steroids for Hogan – untraceable money. So he provided large amounts of money and Titan checks to buy bank checks to use to pay Zahorian for steroids that were later distributed to Hogan. It was virtually untraceable to Titan. So much was this the way of life at Titan that Emily Fineberg, Vince McMahon’s executive assistant, was to make sure Hogan got them. Vince McMahon urged and cajoled wrestlers to use steroids.
Dr. Zahorian was dropped like a hot plate because law enforcement was about to learn of this special relationship. But Patterson, Linda McMahon, and defendant Vince McMahon got together to cover their tracks. They had to warn Zahorian so Vince urged Pat to call Zahorian.
Patterson knew of phone taps by the government, so he told Zahorian “call me from a pay phone” to avoid police knowing. Patterson warned Zahorian of the investigation and told him to destroy records of the Titan-Zahorian relationship. A few months earlier this doctor was wanted so badly, but now he was told to stay away. It was a complete about-face.
It was not just Zahorian. They continued to conspire. McMahon ordered another wrestler to get on steroids – Rick Rude – who was off steroids because he wanted to have a baby. Rude got smaller, and that was not acceptable to McMahon, so he told Rude to “get back on the juice” or gas, as they called steroids.
McMahon didn’t say, after he learned of Zahorian, “We need to stop.” Instead, he suggested in a memo that wrestlers get prescriptions for steroids for medical injuries and carry the prescriptions with them.
(O’Shea then summarized count one – see “Background Review” for details – and moved on to explain counts two and three) We will focus on two of many distributions made by Mr. McMahon, two occasion in April and October of 1989 when McMahon distributed to Hulk Hogan.
We will convince you beyond a reasonable doubt the above is true. Witnesses, including Dr. Zahorian, will tell you what he did. He testified falsely at his own trial, so you’ll have to weigh his testimony carefully. He’ll say McMahon helped him over the years and that the majority of his customers were WWF wrestlers and that he got his steroids from a Long Island pharmaceutical company and that Patterson told him to destroy records. Hogan will tell you steroids were everywhere and all he had to do was call Emily Fineberg for steroids. He’ll say that Patterson warned him and said, “Stay away from Zahorian, things are hot.” Sages will testify that he was approached about getting quiet, untraceable money. Fineberg will testify she got checks from Sages and that steroids were a way of life in Titan and that she was instructed to destroy records. Patterson will be forced to admit he had full knowledge and requested Zahorian call him on a pay phone and he’ll say McMahon told him to do it. Gary Wadler, a foremost expert on steroids, will tell you what they are – a chemical derivative of testosterone.
We will offer documentary proof with memos, documents, and checks confirming a conspiracy and cover-up and telling wrestlers how to cover up. (“)……
At 9:40, after O’Shea concluded his opening remarks, a 15 minute sidebar (where the lawyers meet with the judge without the jury hearing the conversation) took place. The judge then ruled that the fact that Zahorian was convicted of a crime has nothing to do with this case and “cannot be considered.” Jerry McDevitt began his opening statement at 9:55.
·(“) We raised no objection during Mr. O’Shea’s opening statement. We want you to know everything he intends to prove to you. You have now heard everything. I have a lot of information Mr. O’Shea didn’t provide you.
(McDevitt then introduced Vince, Linda, and Laura Brevetti to the jury. He then explained the difference between the grand jury proceedings which led to the indictment and the current proceedings, stating that the defendant does not get to confront his accusers during the grand jury proceedings. He said there is no judge or media to make sure rules of evidence and fairness are followed.) It is filled with innuendo and is a totally one-sided proceeding. The prosecution decides who goes before a grand jury and decides what questions will and will not be asked. You the jury are the only protection against unjust prosecution.
You must presume innocence throughout the trial. You must decide not just whether a crime was committed but whether these people committed a crime. Zahorian is not here as a defendant. He is not charged with conspiracy.
This is our first chance to confront our accusers. Most people try to tell the truth, but honest differences of recall and outright lies take place. You will see all of that.
We are talking about events that began in a cow town in Pennsylvania 17 years ago when Jimmy Carter was president. Everybody called George Zahorian a doctor. My client is not a doctor. He is a layman. Layman don’t understand prescription drugs as well as doctors.
Steroids are not an illegal drug. It is a legal product produced by legal pharmaceutical companies. Did Mr. O’Shea tell you about steroids? I’m not here to advocate steroid use, but I also don’t want to be part of the hysteria. Let us give you factual information on why men take it. If you hear the evidence, you will understand the conspiracy did not make men take this drug. Steroid have been used to enhance athletic performance for decades. From 1985 to 1991 no law made it a crime to take steroids to build up muscles. O’Shea is talking about prescription drug law, which he did not tell you, which is the role Dr. Zahorian must play in this process.
(McDevitt then drew a flow chart on a large paper sheet showing the flow of regulation from the pharmaceutical companies to the FDA to wholesalers to pharmaceutical distributors to doctors to patients, saying that all of those steps exist to protect the consumer.) Wrestlers violated no laws.
The conspiracy charge says Zahorian was a drug dealer. From 1977 to June 1989 he functioned as a State Athletic Commission doctor. In June of 1989 Pennsylvania changed its law so that a state physician was no longer required to be present, so it was up to the promoter to decide on a doctor. Mr. O’Shea gave you the sizzle, but not the steak. Zahorian never appeared at a WWF card again after the law changed.
What did O’Shea emphasize? He talked about a cover-up, destroying records. Steroids are a stigma. Some think of taking steroids as cheating or that they corrupt athletics. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. But, at all times pertinent to this case, it was not in violation of the law to use steroids. (McDevitt then points to the reporters in the court room and blames them for the hysteria about steroids.) Is there a steak here? Look to the cake, not the icing.
What is a conspiracy? If I’m charged with conspiring to murder, I know how to avoid crossing the line. If you have six people plotting in a room to rob a bank, that is a conspiracy. Did you hear anything like that? Neither did I. Zahorian didn’t speak to McMahon more than five minutes in his life. This man (points to Vince) is the busiest man in the building. He has a show to run, wrestlers to coordinate, people to work with.
Wrestlers took steroids because they wanted to be big and strong and enhance their performances. They’re gonna buy them and use them whether or not there is a conspiracy. Focus on this alleged conversation (McMahon and Zahorian had). What did they say? They only talked once in six years. Do you have a feel for the conversation. Were wrestlers taking steroids before the conversation. Evidence will show it wasn’t hard to fine steroids at this time, so there was no reason for a conspiracy.
You’ll also have to decide which time Zahorian perjured himself. Mr. O’Shea told you he is going to change his testimony. When O’Shea took Zahorian before the grand jury Zahorian had interest in getting out of jail; he wanted to see his family. O’Shea told Zahorian we want a case against “the target,” Vince McMahon.
That’s the only evidence of a conspiracy – one conversation. McMahon asked Zahorian if he sold steroids, Zahorian said yes. Zahorian, a doctor, then told a layman, Mr. McMahon, that it was better he sold wrestlers steroids than they get them from the black market. If you believe the conversation took place, do you believe McMahon should have said, “No, let the wrestlers go to the black market.” No one ever told Zahorian, “Don’t be a doctor, be a drug dealer.” Zahorian made money off of his steroid sales. Titan never shared in his profits.
Mr. McMahon admitted using steroids. He admitted it publicly. He said he experimented with the drug. He’s charged with possession with intent to distribute. Did he distribute drugs? Why isn’t he charged with distribution. On April 13, 1994, the government claimed McMahon obtained steroids with intent to distribute on April 13, 1989, which was the final day before the statue of limitations ran out – at which point, we wouldn’t have dignified a stale charge with court time. Steroids are $2.15 a bottle, so it was a $40 crime.
The evidence will show a reasonable doubt that ever happened, that Hogan didn’t need Zahorian to order steroids. After three summers of investigating Mr. McMahon, how many wrestlers did they find he distributed to? Why, no more than Hogan, his best friend then. Hogan was indeed the WWF’s success – a remarkable, charismatic character. He brought in crowds and flexed his muscles. They are criminalizing a friendship – two men who used steroids together.
We will give you a different view of the witnesses. Anita Scales is still a WWF employee. You will see she has a need to be right, to say, “I told you so.” She still has her job.
Wrestling is not an athletic contest, if that comes as any revelation. It is entertainment. Studio wrestling is what they used to call it. Today, many Titan Sports employees have good, high-paying jobs. Consider whether the wrestlers took steroids before and after working for the WWF. Are wrestlers mad that they are no longer with Titan. Are they people with axes to grind, or trying to get money. Dr. Wadler makes good money being a government witness by being a “foremost expert,” but does he really explain what the drug is and why it’s made?
I have to prove nothing to you. We will vigorously cross-examine the government’s case and find there is not proof of a conspiracy between McMahon and Titan. (“)……
Laura Brevetti, counsel to Vince McMahon, then took center stage and dazzled – if not at times intimidated – the jurors with her energy and charisma.
(“) A lot has been said and a lot has not been said. Nothing in that man’s (pointing to Vince) life is as important as what happens in this courtroom. What happens will alter his and his family’s life forever. (Brevetti then talked about the sanctity of the court room. She then said Zahorian never came into the Eastern District of New York to distribute.) You’ll have to judge memories of conversations of events and conversations four, six, ten years ago that took place not here, but in Pennsylvania and Stamford.
Before 1991, wrestlers and bodybuilders took steroids to enhance their physiques. If you take steorids, you’ll still have to work out and eat right. Workouts build bodies, not steroids. McMahon wanted wrestlers to be in shape because they wouldn’t become popular if they looked ordinary. Witnesses will say wrestlers were encouraged to be in shape and work out. Does that mean only what O’Shea said, that “in some words, he meant get on the gas.” Don’t let people get away with saying, “I understood him to say.” Ask them, instead, what did you see and what was told to you – only. (angrily) If they say they didn’t talk to Vince McMahon, then say THANK YOU, BUT YOU’RE NOT HELPING.
Wrestling is not a competitive sport. It has existed for dcades… My client was the first person to say, “It’s not real. We try to entertain audiences and I think we do a pretty good job.” Mr. Bollea said “Old wrestling was insulting people’s intelligence. Wrestling was going nowhere with beer drinking, cigar smoking fans. Wrestling is acting, charisma. Wrestlers are some of the greatest actors, entertainers, athletes in the world. That’s what made the WWF popular with the young, the old, families. If you don’t like wrestling, don’t take that out on him (Vince). All wrestling matches are scripted for TV. Who will win is sripted. How they win is scripted. There is still a debate today among fans – that’s part of the mystique that makes wrestling popular. Mystique doesn’t belong here, just the truth.
I wish we all had 20/20 hindsight. I wish we all had that so we wouldn’t make mistakes. Years ago, bodybuilders ate 12 raw eggs for protein. Kids were given eggs by parents to help them grow. We learned years later that eggs were bad for cholesterol and that they clotted our arteries. The act of using steroids was a personal choice. You will come to know my client is a very smart businessman. Mr. McMahon made a choice to take steroids, but didn’t know what we know today.
We are not Dr. Zahorian’s lawyers – THANK GOD! While he distributed steroids, athletic commissers were present. He has testified under oath he told key Pennsylvania State Athletic Commissioners, “I’m dispensing steroids to wrestlers” and nothing was done by the commission. (angrily) The Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission is not seated at my defense table!…
The government will bring you a learned expert saying Zahorian was not acting as a doctor. If that was supposed to be so clear to a layperson like my client, then why do they need an expert to testify to that fact. Zahorian says he didn’t know of the ’88 law change. The prosecution says Zahorian is a liar under oath. He’s not considered a liar now because he’s being used to prosecute Mr. McMahon…
Some of the prosecution’s witnesses were released a decade ago, some more recently. Some have recently worked or presently work for Titan’s prime and sole competitor – that is WCW owned by Ted Turner. You will hear that Mr. Bollea shortly after or before it came to be a possibility my clinet would be indicted began negotiating with WCW and just recently signed a multi-million dollar contract on TV. Others will try to shift the cloud of hysteria onto my client so they can continue to be stars in hollywood, on TV, and sign multi-million dollar contracts. You may learn of mistakes or foibles and I hope you put them in perspective.
Emily Fineberg left Titan in October or September of ’91 making $64,000 a year. Her husband worked for Titan at $130,000 a year. She was paid for a full year after she left and in October of ’92, when her severence pay ended, she marched over to the FBI and became an informant, a mole, to give them her version, her spin of events. She had no personal knowledge of events.
The stakes are high, the self-interest and motives will fill this courtroom. You can cut it with a knife. It’s not whether or not Zahorian should have dispensed steroids, but was there a meeting of the minds that Zahorian should not act as a doctor. What was left out was that Zahorian will testify he told Mr. McMahon, “I’m keeping them healthy.” Was that true? Only Zahorian knew. Suppose McMahon said, “As long as they’re healthy.” (Brevetti then questions Zahorian’s motives, bringing up his requests for work release.) Zahorian will tell you McMahon did not pay him to dispense steroids – he never got anything from McMahon. McMahon even had to pay for steroids he was getting from a Zahorian, his supposed “partner in crime.” McMahon even had to pay in advance. This is a partner in crime? This is a conspiracy (pause) – some partnership.
Watch out for sudden memories or late recall from those who hold a grudge or hold a personal interest in the outcome of this case.
No one was trying to hide anything from the government because that check is going to be presented in this courtroom. The check went into Zahorian’s bank account.
Can you think of another reason someone might not want someone to know they take steroids in a company that is like a small town? It’s the same reason someone might hide that they take Rogaine for bald spots. It’s called vanity. You need a crime before you can cover it up. This was a case of fear of bad publicity. Hulk Hogan will tell you. “I lied on national TV when I said I didn’t take steroids.” Did you misbrand drugs to defraud the FDA, or conspire with Zahorian? “No,” he’ll say, “I feared the publicity of it. My family would be hounded. My life would be ruined.”
(Brevetti closed by talking about patriotism and the Fourth of July and the jury’s obligation to presume he’s not guilty until they hear the evidence.) He has said, “I am not guilty and I want my day in court.” (“)……
Judge Mishler then told the jury that they should await his instructions on what is legal and what isn’t and if they are different from what the attorneys just told them, they must take his instructions, not theirs.
The rest of the day saw four former WWF wrestlers testify. The following are the main points made by each of them:
·Randy Colly (a/k/a Moondog Rex). During O’Shea’s direct questioning he said Dr. Zahorian was known as the guy you would buy steroids from. He said Zahorian checked blood pressure and then you could buy his drugs. He said he bought steroids with the cash advance he got earlier from WWF officials. He said Zahorian would ask him what he needed, he would tell him, and Zahorian would give the drugs to him. He said Zahorian didn’t take down medical history, ask about allergies, or administer blood tests. He said there was no follow-up. He said a line would form of wrestlers with money wanting to purchase steroids. He said road agents would tell wrestlers to see Dr. Zahorian “if you looked like you were worn out.” He said McMahon was in the proximity at times and that he saw Vince talk with Zahorian.
He said McMahon told his partner, Mr. Booker (Moondog Spot), in 1986 he wasn’t looking quite like the type of athlete he likes. Colly said he was taking steroids and McMahon didn’t complain about his look, but his partner only “played around, but wasn’t dedicated” to steroids. When O’Shea asked Colly what he believed McMahon to mean when he talked to his partner, the defense objected and the judge sustained. He said when Hershey was no longer frequented every three weeks by the WWF for TV and became merely a location for house shows, Zahorian would sell more steroids at one time so wrestlers had a longer supply. He said Zahorian would either fill a brown bag with drugs or send them via Federal Express.
On cross-examination by McDevitt, Colly said he used steroids once before meeting Zahorian. McDevitt asked him what his education level was and he said he didn’t finish high school. He said when he began buying steroids from Zahorian in 1979 or ’80, McMahon was just a ring announcer. He said he used steroids after leaving the WWF in 1980. He said he got steroids from Zahorian through the mail while in the NWA and from other suppliers at gyms. When McDevitt asked if Colly saw Zahorian as a doctor, Colly laughed and said no. “If I was really sick, I’d go find someone else.” McDevitt established that Colly was taken out of the Demolition tag team not because he wasn’t on steroids, but because the fans chanted “Moondog” at him the first two nights because they “recognized my nose.” He said he used steroids in WCW in 1987. He said Zahorian was in the locker room distributing steroids some times and other times was in a separate room. McDevitt held up a brown paper bag. Colly said Zahorian’s were bigger. McDevitt asked Colly if he knew the contents of the bag he was holding. Colly said no. McDevitt then established that Colly filed a civil lawsuit against Titan in December 1992. Colly said he once talked to McMahon while he had steroids in his hands. Brevetti established that Colly used Zahorian for help when he was suffering mental anguish by obtaining valium from Zahorian in 1987. He said neither McMahon nor WWF road agents told him to take steroids.
On cross-examination by Brevetti, Colly said he got advance money at all WWF events, around $100 or $200. Brevetti established that WWF wrestlers are independent contractors and thus paid their own rental car, food, and hotel expenses, thus had a need for cash advances. She established that Colly cited Zahorian was his physician in his civil suit against Titan for emotional distress, which contradicted his earlier testimony that he didn’t consider Zahorian his doctor.
On redirect from O’Shea, Colly said he suffered roid rage. “You become bitter, grouchy, anything will set you off. Without sleep, you feel you’re gonna explode, so Valium and Halcyons would help you calm down from that.”
Tom Zenk. During O’Shea’s direct, Zenk said he began using steroids in 1981 under a doctor’s supervision and that he used steroids long before going to the WWF. He said the first time he was in Hershey, road agent Jack Lanza asked if he wanted to see the doctor. “He said, ‘If you want anything, He’s got it,’ meaning drugs,” said Zenk. Zenk said Lanza also asked if he needed an advance. Zenk said he never actually bought steroids from Zahorian because he had his own doctor in Minneapolis whom he got them from. Zenk said there was once a complaint by a high school where a WWF show was held that needles were left lying around by wrestlers after the WWF event.
Zenk said he left the WWF on bad terms. He said he told Linda he wasn’t happy with the money, so on July 10, 1987 he just walked out on his contract. Zenk said when he was contacted by All Japan, Linda and Titan found out and wrote him demanding a percentage of his income because of their investment in him. Zenk said, “I told them I have the New York Times phone number in front of me. How would you like me to call them and tell them you sell your product of men on steroids to kids. She said, ‘I don’t think that would be a good idea.’ I took it as a threat.”
Zenk laughed when asked if he was subpoenaed to be a witness. “Yes, I was,” he said. (Zenk had to miss part of his Japan tour to be present and definately did not want to testify.)
On cross-examination by McDevitt, Zenk admitted he called the McMahon residence at 2 a.m. about three weeks earlier. McDevitt asked Zenk if he was on drugs at the time of the call. Zenk said no. Zenk said he asked Linda why they were still tormenting him after 7 years. McDevitt pointed out the irony of the phone call: “You called the McMahons even though the government subpoenaed you?” Zenk said that was correct. Zenk said he got in trouble for steroid possession while in WCW, but said it was only a first offense. Zenk said McMahon never asked him to take steroids.
On cross-examination by Brevetti, Zenk said he could buy steroids at gyms or from other physicians. He said he chose a physician to avoid the risk of fake steroids. Zenk said it was his personal, individual choice to take steroids. He said he never told McMahon he was on steroids. He said advances were available, not just at WWF events where Zahorian was. Zenk said taking steroids was like fertilizing a lawn and it gave him energy, a better physique, and a better recovery rate from injuries. He said he didn’t take steroids in WCW because they had a policy against it, but after his contract expired May 16, 1994, he began taking steroids again and as recently as three weeks ago.
Terry Szopinski (a/k/a The Warlord). On direct from O’Shea, Szopinski said he began taking steroids in 1986. He said he injected other wrestlers with steroids between 1987 and ’92 while in the WWF. He said he flushed needles down toilets. He said Bret Hart was known for putting drawings on blackboards in locker rooms and he often drew a wrestler leaning over with needles sticking out of his butt. He said road agents saw the drawings. He said Dr. Zahorian was known for distributing steroids. He said road agent Dave Hebner told him he could get steroids and pills from the doctor. He said he never bought steroids from Zahorian because his prices were too high. He said Zahorian didn’t take down any medical history or ask if he had any ailments. He said McMahon didn’t tell him not to use steroids until after the Zahorian trial.
On cross-examination by McDevitt, Szopinski said he weighed 195 pounds before taking steroids and now weighs 305. He said he used steroids in college obtained from gym people. He said Vince was never in the room where Zahorian set up shop. He said he was arrested in November 1992 for steroid possession in Eagan, Minn. and was put on 18-month probation. He said he has not used steroids since, although he also said he hasn’t lost weight. He said he never saw McMahon and Zahorian talk. He said he recently wrote a letter to McMahon asking for his job back.
On cross-examination from Brevetti, he said he feels healthy today. He said he was concerned about fake steroids and that’s why today he gets his steroids from doctors overseas. He said McMahon only attended TV tapings.
On redirect, O’Shea asked if any wrestlers were still on steroids after steroid testing began. Szopinski said Harvey Whippleman took a urine test for Sid Justice (Eudy) and was caught. (The judge later ruled the jury should disregard the Sid incident.)
Tully Blanchard. On direct from O’Shea, Blanchard said he took steroids before going to the WWF. He said he had a meeting with McMahon at McMahon’s pool while he was still with the NWA. He said the drug testing policy was discussed and that McMahon said cocaine were not acceptable, but steroids and other stuff was okay. Upon arriving in the WWF, he said Zahorian, after a short meeting, held up a white box, shook it, and told him he could have whatever he wanted. Blanchard said he heard about Zahorian years before joining the WWF.
On cross-examination by McDevitt, Blanchard said he did’t specifically remember the word “steroids” being used by McMahon when he talked about the drug policy. McDevitt said, “Taking steroids was a continuation of what you did before?” Blanchard said yes. Blanchard said steroid use in the NWA was “pretty close” to that in the WWF at the time. McDevitt tried to hurt Blanchard’s credibility as an ordained minister by making an issue of Blanchard having been ordained after less than a year of training.
On cross-examination by Brevetti, Blanchard said he wrestled for WCW two months ago.
