In a blow to the prosecution, a federal judge on Tuesday threw out key pieces of evidence and testimony the government planned to use in its perjury case against Sacramento Kings all-star Chris Webber and his father, Mayce Webber Jr.

U.S. District Judge Nancy G. Edmunds forbid the government from using the late U-M booster Eddie Martin's handwritten notes that federal prosecutors say detail hundreds of thousands of dollars of payments to Webber and three other former University of Michigan basketball players.

The government also can't call NBA stars Maurice Taylor and Robert Traylor, or Louis Bullock, to testify about the accuracy of Martin's records, Edmunds ruled. Traylor and Bullock admitted taking money from Martin in front of the grand jury.

The judge also ruled that the government couldn't claim Martin gave Webber $280,000, a figure that is recorded in handwritten notes the FBI seized during a raid of Martin's house.

The judge's rulings hurt a prosecution that has been hampered by the Feb. 15 death of Martin, its star witness. The government, which accuses the Webbers of lying about whether they received large gifts from Martin and had dealings with him, already has dropped charges of obstruction of justice against them and all charges against Chris Webber's aunt, Charlene Johnson.

"There's not much left," said James W. Burdick, a Bloomfield Hills attorney who is a former Wayne County assistant prosecutor. "Can you imagine how the government would react if the defense tried to get in a document that a dead witness supposedly had written?"

Anthony Chambers, a prominent Detroit defense attorney, agreed. "The government's case seems to be falling apart."