Justice Department Charges Lance Armstrong "Unjustly Enriched" Himself

Why was the Post Office sponsoring him to begin with?

Reason 24/7

After years of denying it, championship cyclist Lance Armstrong admitted to using performance enhancing drug and was stripped of his Tour de France titles. The Department of Justice is now following through on a lawsuit aimed at Armstrong and his use of taxpayer funds (the Post Office was a major endorser).

From the Washington Times:

The Justice Department filed charges against disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong on Tuesday, claiming he violated a contract with his former teammates and "unjustly enriched" himself with his drug-fueled Tour de France wins.
Mr. Armstrong admitted in January he used performance-enhancing drugs to help win all seven of his Tour de France trophies.

Read more Reason on Lance Armstrong here.

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Comments

[tarran]

I'm sorry, since when are contract violations, criminal matters for the Justice Department?

Oh yes, since 'fuck you, that's why'.

[DesigNate]

It's right there in black and white: he "unjustly enriched himself with his drug fueled Tour de France wins."

I mean it has the first part of justice in it so obviously it's their business.

[Ken Shultz]

"The Justice Department filed charges against disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong on Tuesday, claiming he violated a contract with his former teammates"

Can't his teammates sue him for damages?

Sounds like a federal prosecutor somewhere wants to be in the news.

[Matrix]

Filing charges is beyond ridiculous. Should they sue him? Absolutely! And he should have to pay back every dime he received from the government. But is it a crime? It is, but it should not be!

[Fist of Etiquette]

Cancer, Sheryl Crow Survivor Sued by Politician

Unrelated News: Federal Prosecutor Thinking of Running for Higher Office

[Kaptious Kristen]

Yeah, this seems like a civil matter even though it's taxpayer money in question.

I assume there's precedent for the government to sue a citizen for breech of contract or other civil matters?

[Cdr Lytton]

Why not? DOJ got a conviction against a reservist who continued to receive an active duty paycheck after being demobilized.

[Pro Libertate]

Wait, what? Are they going after every single player in every sport who juiced? What about the teams and TV networks that benefited? Or the sponsors who made more money because of the enhanced performance?

How on Earth is this a matter for the DOJ?

[Matrix]

He received public funds. That's why they are going after him. If he did not receive public funds, it would be NOTFB!

[Pro Libertate]

I still don't get it. Why him and not hundreds of other athletes? I'm sure some tenuous connection could be made to the federal government for them, too.

[Matrix]

it's easy to kick a man when he's down.

[Kaptious Kristen]

Lance should be kicked, repeatedly. Not for the drugs - I couldn't care less about that - but for using his cache to ruin people's lives while lying about the whole thing the whole time.

[Stilgar]

The USPS has not directly received taxpayer-dollars since the early 1980s with the minor exception of subsidies for costs associated with the disabled and overseas voters.

So I guess that settles it?

[a better weapon]

What difference, at this point, does it make?

[a better weapon]

"The Department of Justice is now following through on a lawsuit aimed at Armstrong and his use of taxpayer funds (the Post Office was a major endorser)."

It seems to me that the real problem is that the USPS and taxpayer money is being used to endorse sporting events of any kind in the first place.

[AlmightyJB]

Without advertising no one would ever know there was a post office.

[johnl]

Bingo. I am glad he cheated and disgraced the USPS and I hope the USPS learns its lesson.

[invisible furry hand]

why don't they just take his other testicle and be done with it

[AlmightyJB]

That is why they have no balls.

[NeonCat]

The Post Office sponsored him as a form of advertising, not from a deep and abiding love of cycling, yes? He won*, they got the USPS logo plastered all over the sporting press. How did he cheat them?

[Pro Libertate]

He didn't. It's not like the USPS is taking a PR hit for sponsoring the team.

[Apatheist ?_??]

Their bad reputation, he didn't build that.

[Auric Demonocles]

All those people who mailed stuff in the 00's are going to go back and unmail them now that they found out Armstrong was Drugstrong.

[Pro Libertate]

Look, whatever Armstrong may have done, he was the first man on the Moon.

[Auric Demonocles]

Only because he was all hopped up on adderall!

[Pro Libertate]

You think the Soviets weren't using?

[Auric Demonocles]

I also think everyone that he beat on the bikes was using too.

[Zeb]

That's the big thing. It seems like pretty much every high level cyclist was juicing. Maybe that's a problem, but the intense focus on Armstrong is kind of silly. He lied and was an ass about it, so he deserves all the scorn anyone wants to heap on him, but I think that is plenty.

[Bee Tagger]

What part of the contract is he being accused of violating? The WashPo article doesn't say.

[invisible furry hand]

the press release does:

The sponsorship agreements gave the USPS certain promotional rights, including the right to prominent placement of the USPS logo on the cycling team's uniform. Each of the agreements required the team to follow the rules of cycling's governing bodies, which prohibited the use of certain performance enhancing substances and methods. Between 2001 and 2004 alone, the Postal Service paid $31 million in sponsorship fees.

The lawsuit joined today by the government alleges that riders on the USPS-sponsored team, including Armstrong, knowingly caused the USPS agreements to be violated by regularly employing banned substances and methods to enhance their performance.

BTW, charges have NOT been filed - the DOJ is joining in the civil action.

[SugarFree]

He cheated in a sport virtually no one cares about! O!M!G! HE CHEATED ARBITRARY RULES OF A PRIVATE ORGANIZATION! [collective gasp from all humans everywhere]

[Pro Libertate]

See, that's where you are wrong. The president and the AG were both huge Armstrong fans and were disappoint.

[SugarFree]

Drone his ass! Let's see how your children's mode of transport and bright fetish wear saves you from a good old fashion country Dronin'!

[Scooby]

I thought the current gov't talking point was that the post office was self-sufficient and didn't receive taxpayer money. Did the DoJ not get the memo from the Postmaster General?

[DesigNate]

How do you conclusively prove that the only reason he was able to win was the drugs?

[Kaptious Kristen]

Every single last rider at that level of the sport is using, so he won on great team management, great team riders, great equipment, great strategy, and skill.

[Cdr Lytton]

his use of taxpayer funds (the Post Office was a major endorser)

That's unpossible! The post office doesn't receive any taxes. It's completely self supporting. And postal inspectors aren't federal agents.

[nalyd]

IF the government wins, can Lance re-file his taxes for those years?

[Cdr Lytton]

Or can the IRS prosecute for false returns?

[Emmerson Biggins]

I agree that this is bullshit.

But still you know the saying : dance with the devil, and you'll get fleas.