"I was quite impressed with Mr. Harrison's response when he was confronted with the issue," said Albany County District Attorney P. David Soares in a telephone interview. "I commend him for immediately taking responsibility and being completely cooperative and forthright."
Harrison, 34, bought the HGH from the Palm Beach Rejuvenation Center with a bogus prescription allegedly signed by a heart surgeon, Robert G. Carlson, who never examined him, according to Chris Baynes, an Albany County assistant district attorney. The law requires doctors to see patients before they write prescriptions.
Carlson and one of the clinic's owners have pleaded guilty in the case, which is part of "Operation Which Doctor," a nationwide crackdown by Soares on illegal Internet drug sales.
Harrison, a 14-year veteran safety and former Pro Bowler, has been suspended four games by the NFL for violating its policy on banned substances, but he is not expected to face criminal charges even though it is illegal to purchase medication with a bogus prescription.
Soares indicated the primary target of the investigation is a Florida-based clearinghouse, Signature Pharmacy, which manufactured many of the drugs that clinics like Palm Beach Rejuvenation sold over the Internet. Authorities allege Signature Pharmacy also sold drugs illegally online.
"This case has never been about the athletes," Soares said. "It has been about trying to eliminate the availability of performance-enhancing substances and other drugs over the Internet."
Soares acknowledged, however, that in the highly competitive world of professional sports, the proliferation of Internet sites distributing performance-enhancing drugs "is a dangerous thing and is sending a very dangerous message."
It was only a matter of time before Harrison was implicated in the crackdown after investigators staged simultaneous raids last Feb. 27 on the offices of Signature Pharmacy and the Palm Beach Rejuvenation Center. The names of Harrison and Wade Wilson, the Dallas Cowboys' quarterback coach, appeared in records seized at the Palm Beach Rejuvenation Center, Baynes said.
