Lance Armstrong accused of withholding information in False Claims Act lawsuit

The False Claims Act lawsuit against Lance Armstrong continues to bumble on without actually getting to court, with the prosecution now claiming the disgraced former rider has not disclosed information he planned to use in an expert testimony.

According to Law360, the US government has asked the court to preclude an expert testimony from Dr Erich Joachimsthaler, who was to present evidence from two marketing surveys on the public perception of the US Postal Service during Armstrong’s period with the team sponsored by it.

While Armstrong was ordered to hand over data from the surveys to the court, he has reportedly not done so.

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“Despite ample opportunity to do so, Armstrong has not fully complied with this Court’s order, and the data he continues to withhold are both material to Dr. Joachimsthaler’s opinions and prejudicial to the government’s ability to perform its own independent analysis of Dr. Joachimsthaler’s methods and opinions,” the government’s sanctions motion said, quoted on Law360.

It added: “In the present case, Armstrong appears to have deliberately withheld data that contradict Dr. Joachimsthaler’s conclusions or that call the validity of his methods into question.

“Armstrong should not be permitted to sponsor testimony based on data he failed to produce by the Court-ordered deadline and continues to wrongfully withhold.”

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The case was brought by Armstrong’s former teammate Floyd Landis, who claimed that Armstrong and Tailwind Sports Corporation submitted false claims to the US Postal Service by doping their way to multiple Tour de France titles.

Armstrong argues that the USPS knew about the doping problem in the sport, but ‘turned a blind eye’ when it sponsored the team while reaping the benefits, according to Law360.