Welcome to our one-stop
repository of all ProFootballTalk.com Rumor Mill stories regarding the
federal criminal action against Michael Vick. For the full scope of
our stories regarding the investigation culminating in the July 17
indictment, click here.
POSTED 5:24
p.m. EDT, August 24, 2007
IS DMX MIKE'S FIRST VICTIM?
With Mike Vick pleading guilty to
federal conspiracy charges and agreeing to "provide all information known to
[him] regarding any criminal activity as requested by the government," is it a
coincidence that one day after Vick signed the papers the house of rapper DMX
was raided, and 12 "distressed" pit bulls were removed?
If Vick truly was a dog fighting
"heavyweight," would Vick not know about other celebrities who engage in the
sport?
It's possible that it really was a
coincidence. But it's also possible that any and all high-profile sports
and entertainment figures will soon be getting a visit from guys with guns and
badges.
Notwithstanding the anonymous
source who told the anonymous reporter at ESPN that Vick would not admit to
killing dogs or to gambling, Vick admits to everything.
In paragraph 1, Vick pleads guilty
to conspiracy to establish, maintain, etc. an interstate gambling enterprise and
conspiracy to engage in interstate dog fighting.
In paragraph 2, Vick admits that
the Surry County property to which he initially said he never goes was the main
staging area for housing and training pit bulls for fighting.
In paragraph 3, Vick admits to
being involved in dog fights at the Surry County property, and to participating
in dog fights in other states.
In paragraph 4, Vick admits that
the enterprise involved gambling activities in violation of Virginia law.
Vick denies that he placed side bets on any fights, or that he received process
from the purses. (However, he admits that he was the primary source of
funds for the operation. If the winnings went only to his co-defendants,
then that's less money Vick had to give them to get them to continue to tend to
the operation while he was "at work" for the Atlanta Falcons.)
In paragraph 9, Vick admits that
he began acquiring dogs for the operation in "2001-2002," and that the "Bad Newz
Kennels" were established in 2002.
In paragraph 12, Vick admits that
he knew the other defendants "killed a number of dogs" that did not perform well
in testing sessions in 2002. Vick denies killing any dogs at that time.
In paragraph 32, Vick admits that
in April 2007 -- the same month in which he say face-to-face with NFL
Commissioner Roger Goodell and denied that dog fighting was occurring on his
land -- he agreed with Purnell Peace and Quanis Phillips to kill six-to-eight
dogs that did not perform well in testing sessions. Here's the key
passage:
"[A]ll of those dogs were killed
by various methods, including hanging and drowning. VICK agrees and
stipulates that these dogs all died as a result of the collective efforts of
PEACE, PHILLIPS, and VICK."
Case closed. He admits to
gambling, and he admits to killing dogs.
Someone at ESPN has some serious
explaining to do.
We continue to be confused by the
Thursday night report from ESPN, which it curiously has attributed to no
specific reporter, that Mike Vick will not admit to killing dogs or to gambling
when he enters a guilty plea on Monday.
The initial report ignored
completely the question of whether federal prosecutors agreed to the limitation
on Vick's acceptance of responsibility. An update posted at 5:02 a.m. EDT
notes that Vick's
attorneys believed that they struck an agreement with prosecutors regarding
Vick's limited plea.
Still, the report makes little
sense to us.
As to the killing of dogs on his
Surry County property, Vick will admit that he was present but that he did not
kill dogs. Vick obviously is splitting hairs on this in an effort to avoid
liability for animal cruelty under Virginia law.
So Vick has gone from saying "I
never go there" to "I never kill dogs there." We didn't believe Vick the
first time, and we don't believe him this time, either.
Besides, Vick's limited plea
doesn't exonerate him from scrutiny under Virginia law. Section
3.1-796.122 of the Virginia statutes does not apply only to people who actually
kill dogs. If a person "instigates,
engages in, or in any way furthers any act of cruelty to any animal"
resulting in death, the person is still guilty of a Class 6 felony, which means
up to five years in jail per count.
And, really, should the fact that
Vick was merely supervising the dog killing make any difference? If the
mob boss who watches his capo put a bullet in the guy is just as guilty of
murder as the person who pulled the trigger, why isn't Vick responsible for the
killing of dogs that he owned when the killings occurred on his
property while he was present? (A reader tells us that Chris
Mortensen of ESPN articulated a similar view last night.)
As to the report that Vick will
plead only to conspiracy to engage in interstate dog fighting, we continue to
believe that there's no way this one will fly, since omission of the interstate
gambling component reduces his maximum sentence to one year. Also, the
notion that Vick wasn't in it for the gambling is simply not credible.
Regardless of whether Vick's
lawyers think that they have an agreement, there's simply no way (in our view)
that the prosecutors will allow the conspiracy to engage in interstate gambling
charge to fall out of this case, since to do so would greatly reduce Vick's
ultimate sentence from the current recommendation of 12-to-18 months.
So why is Vick taking this
approach? It's a three-pronged goal of getting back to the NFL sooner by
making it harder for Surry County, Virginia prosecutor Gerald Poindexter to
convict him under Virginia law, reducing the likelihood that the NFL will
suspend him for gambling, and avoiding the stigma of killing dogs as he tries to
muster enough public support for his eventual return.
Plain and simple, the Vick lawyers
are trying to pull a fast one. On Monday, they created the impression that
Vick will admit to everything, causing many to proclaim that coming clean is his
first step toward getting a second chance. On Thursday, the universe of
"everything" to which he will admit has been restricted significantly, all in
the name of accelerating the timetable for his second chance.
The only problem is that
Commissioner Roger Goodell "gets it," and will regard for what it is this
transparent attempt by Vick to force his way back onto the field. And it
will influence, in our opinion, the ultimate penalty that Goodell imposes.
It would be one thing for Vick to
accept responsibility and plea for mercy. Such an approach could prompt
Goodell to go easier on him. But with Vick now trying to dictate the terms
of the responsibility that he will accept where his version of the events
contradicts other evidence and common sense, we suspect that Goodell will not be
inclined to show mercy, and could conclude in the end that Vick indeed gambled
and then persistently tried to cover it up even after supposedly agreeing to
plead guilty. And that could prompt Goodell to ultimately throw the book
at Vick, suspending him for a period far longer than he would have been
suspended if he had followed through on his commitment to admit to what he has
done.
FEDS FAILED TO FOLLOW THROUGH
WHEN VICK WAS CRYING "UNCLE"
If ESPN's report is accurate, the
bizarre glitch that has arisen in the Mike Vick prosecution has resulted from
one thing and one thing only: The failure of federal prosecutors to
insist, as part of the plea offer, on the language that would be included in the
"statement of facts" that Vick will sign when he pleads guilty.
On Monday, August 20, Vick was
trapped. Guilty as charged, he knew that the government would now likely
be able to prove it with the testimony of Purnell Peace and Quanis Phillips.
And with a grand jury poised to hit him with more charges, Vick's only choice
was to take the deal.
And that would have been the time
for the feds to ensure that Vick will also agree to a "statement of facts" that
is consistent with the documents signed by Peace and Phillips. Both
claimed that Vick financed the gambling side of the operation, and both claimed
that Vick not only was present but also participated in killing of eight dogs in
April 2007.
By giving Vick 72 hours to feel
emboldened by the voices of support that seem to be willing to brush this matter
aside as an issue involving "just dogs," Vick's "I can do what I want" mentality
has quickly re-emerged.
If prosecutors merely had insisted
on the language of the statement of facts as part of the plea discussions, this
problem would have been avoided. And, hopefully, the prosecutors have not
agreed to consent to demands made by the Vick team without the benefit of
leverage.
As we explained earlier on Friday
during a bout of insomnia, the prosecutors should prepare their own statement of
facts, present it to Vick, and tell him that he either signs it or the grand
jury re-convenes to issue new charges for which there will be no option cut a
deal.
POSTED 12:15
a.m. EDT; LAST UPDATED 1:18 a.m. EDT, August 24, 2007
REPORT: VICK WON'T ADMIT
TO KILLING DOGS OR GAMBLING
On Monday, lawyers for Mike Vick
said on his behalf that he plans to plead guilty to federal conspiracy charges
relating to dog fighting, and that he is accepting responsibility for his
actions.
But his acceptance of
responsibility apparently goes only so far.
ESPN reports that
Vick will not
admit to killing dogs or to gambling. Citing an unnamed source, ESPN
says that Vick's legal team met with federal officials on Thursday to hammer out
the statement of facts that Vick will sign on Monday when he enters a guilty
plea. Vick reportedly maintains that he never killed a dog and never
gambled on a dog fight.
The tactic isn't surprising, since
refusing to admit to killing a dog or to gambling on a dog fight will enhance
Vick's ability to avoid Virginia charges and a lengthy NFL suspension.
As a result, we don't buy it.
Why would Vick devote so much money to the pursuit of an illegal endeavor that
is a conduit for gambling if he wasn't going to "make it interesting"?
Otherwise, it's like playing poker for pistachio shells.
While we have tremendous respect
for what the federal government has done in this case, and at the risk of
getting "randomly" selected for an audit, why are prosecutors letting Vick's
people dictate the terms of the statement of facts?
More specifically, why didn't the
feds prepare the statement of facts when extending the plea offer and advise
Vick that this is the document that he will sign if he accepts the plea?
Purnell Peace and Quanis Phillips
admitted to killing eight dogs in April 2007, and they both said that Vick
participated. For the feds to allow Vick to avoid this critical fact is,
in our view, extremely unfair to the two guys who pleaded out before him.
Especially since the statements of fact that they signed can now be used against
them by prosecutors in Virginia.
We think that the federal
prosecutors should give Vick two options: sign the same document that
Peace and Phillips signed, or go to trial. Anything else will undermine
the reputation that federal prosecutors currently enjoy.
MUNSON CLEARS THINGS UP A BIT
In a video link appearing in the
ESPN.com story, legal analyst Lester Munson explains exactly what we're
thinking: There's no way that the feds will agree with Vick's attempt to
avoid admitting to gambling or to killing dogs.
And Munson believes that, if
Vick's people push this angle too far, the plea deal will be off the table.
We disagree with one thing that
Munson said, however. If Vick pleads guilty only to conspiracy to engage
in interstate dog fighting, the maximum sentence no longer will be five years.
Instead, the maximum sentence will be the same as the maximum sentence for the
underlying offense of interstate dog fighting. Since dog fighting was not
yet a felony at the federal level when Vick's Surry County, Virginia property
was raided, the maximum sentence for conspiracy to engage in interstate dog
fighting could be only one year.
Thus, there's no way that the feds
will agree to omit from the guilty plea an acknowledgement that Vick conspired
to engage in interstate gambling.
So what are Vick's people up to?
We think they're hoping to capitalize on the fact that the media hasn't really
focused on the gambling angle, and hope to propagate among the general public
the notion that Vick didn't gamble. After all, at a time when Vick has
found an unexpected number of sympathetic voices who are willing to overlook the
mental images of the fallen star killing canines, a little misinformation can't
hurt the long-term P.R. effort aimed at getting Vick back on the football field
as soon as possible.
As we explained on Thursday, the
ultimately ability of Vick to return to the NFL will be driven by market forces.
The public's attitude toward Vick after he gets out of jail and serves his
suspension will be a key factor. By planting the seeds that Vick's crimes
weren't as barbaric as they appear to have been, the lawyers are empowering the
pro-Vick base, and also trying to influence those who are currently undecided
about whether Mike should be able to return to the NFL.
As a result, it's even more
important that the media report the developments in this regard accurately.
Though Munson's on-air explanation puts this development in the right
perspective, the text of the ESPN.com article is vague at best regarding the
question of whether the feds agree with Vick's position that he won't admit to
killing dogs or to gambling.
POSTED 5:41
p.m. EDT, August 23, 2007
FREE MARKET SHOULD DECIDE
VICK'S FATE
At a time when plenty of folks are
arguing that Mike Vick should never be allowed to play again in the NFL and
others are taking the position that once he has paid his debt to society he has
every right to return, a league source summed up the situation for us as best as
we've seen or heard it.
After a certain stay in federal
prison, a possible incarceration in Virginia, and any suspension imposed on him
by the NFL, Vick's fate should be decided by the forces of the free market.
He will, at that point, have every
right to seek employment anywhere he wishes. And prospective employers
will have the right to decline to offer him employment, if they so choose.
There will be, and should be, no
entitlement to return to the NFL. Just as some teams will take a guy off
of their draft boards due to crimes committed in college, some teams will choose
to never do business with Vick, under any circumstances.
Contrary to the beliefs of some,
the fact that Vick played in the NFL while committing his crimes doesn't provide
him with the right to return once he has paid for them. Some teams will
decide that they don't want Vick because of his one-dimensional skill set.
Some won't want him because of the possibility that his presence will disrupt
locker room harmony. Some won't want him for fear of alienating fans or
losing sponsors or facing pickets.
If, once Vick is able to return, a
team chooses to sign him, that team has the right to do so. And people who
disagree with the move have a right to voice their opinions. Such people
also have a right not to buy tickets to the team's games or to watch the team on
television. Such people also have the right to express their views to
others, by any lawful means.
This isn't about whether a person
who has been in jail has the right to work. He does. They all do.
But this doesn't mean that Dr. Kevorkian has the right to become the U.S.
Surgeon General. And it doesn't mean that Mike Vick has a right to
return to the National Football League, in any capacity.
There are people who believe that
the concept of forgiveness requires Vick to regain a seat at the table of pro
athletics. There are people who believe that Vick can be forgiven without
being reinstated. The ultimate outcome will be driven by many factors; in
the end, the market will decide whether Vick can return.
If, of course, he gets out of jail
and off of suspension before his 40th birthday.
POSTED 1:54
p.m. EDT, August 23, 2007
VICK COULD OWE FALCONS ONLY
$3.75 MILLION
Michael Vick's December 2004
contract extension included $37 million in bonuses. Although the money was
characterized as a signing bonus, a league source has explained to us that it
wasn't. At least not completely.
The signing bonus was only $7.5
million. The remaining $29.5 million was paid out as two roster bonuses.
But the Falcons had the right to
convert the roster bonuses to guaranteed amounts, making them the equivalent of
signing bonuses for the purposes of proration under the salary cap.
The problem, however, is that the
payments were not initially characterized as signing bonuses, and therefore
might not be treated as such in a forfeiture effort.
The Ashley Lelie case resulted in
a finding that option bonuses are not subject to repayment. Some believe
that the next step in the overall NFL labor relations process in this regard is
a finding, if/when the issue is presented in a grievance, that roster bonuses
are also untouchable, even if the team has the right to treat the payment as a
signing bonus in order to manage cap costs.
Think of it this way. Roster
bonuses are paid out in a given year, and are charged under the cap only for the
year in which they are paid. After the year ends, a default is irrelevant
because the money has been paid, and earned.
Why, you might ask, didn't the
Falcons just give Vick a $37 million signing bonus? The problem is that
such a payment would have required 1/6th of the amount to have been counted
against the 2004 salary cap. Since the Falcons likely didn't have more
than $6 million left in 2004 cap space at that time, it wasn't a realistic
option. By paying only $7.5 million as a signing bonus, the Falcons were
required to carry only $1.25 million in 2004.
So the Falcons deferred $22.5
million of the money into a roster bonus due in March 2005, and $7.5 million to
a roster bonus due in March 2006. The conversion of the roster bonus to a
guaranteed payment was a no-brainer, since there was no way that the Falcons
were going to show under the salary cap an extra $22.5 million in 2005 or an
extra $7.5 million in 2006 when the money could be spread out over time.
The only alternative would have
been to use two option bonuses, and the fact that the roster bonuses that became
guaranteed payments operate no differently, as a practical matter, than option
bonuses could influence the outcome. The device the Falcons used is no
different than an option bonus. Thus, if an option bonus can't be
recovered, roster bonuses converted to guaranteed payments are protected, too.
If the converted roster bonuses
don't count, Vick likely owes the Falcons only (only?) $3.75 million, which is
the remainder of the proration on his original signing bonus. The bonus
forfeiture formula that the Falcons were using in 2004 could push that number
higher, since it attempts to spread the bonus money beyond the six seasons of
cap proration. But if it's determined that the 2006 CBA retroactively
restricts forfeitures to the amount of the signing bonus that has yet to be
allocated as wages under the salary cap, the amount owed will be $3.75 million.
The other potential twist here is
that the Falcons might have to keep Vick on the team (via a reserve/suspended
and/or a reserve/in-the-hoosegow list) for the next three seasons (or maybe
longer) in order to get the full amount of whatever they are owed. Owner
Arthur Blank might be more interested in simply getting Vick's name off of the
books than Blank is in chasing money that might not ever be collected anyway.
SUSPENDED VICK CAN'T GO TO THE
CFL
We mentioned last night the
possibility that Mike Vick will try to resume his football career after he gets
out of jail in Canada. His criminal record, we explained, could be a
barrier to entering the country. Which would tend to prevent him from
playing in the CFL. We also suggested that the CFL might not want to
become the safe haven for the NFL's miscreants.
Our own MDS noted in a FanHouse
post on Wednesday that
the CFL already has in place a rule that prevents a player who has been
suspended by another league to play the game north of the border. The rule
was implemented after the Ricky Williams experiment.
So the question is whether Vick
would look to Canada after the expiration of any NFL suspension, if Vick simply
can't find an NFL team that is interested in his services. He'd still have
to get special permission to enter the country, and he'd still have to find a
CFL team willing to take the P.R. hit in the name of winning.
But we still think that Vick could
end up being a target of the coming UFL, which plans to use cut-rate players to
compete with the NFL by playing on Friday nights during the fall. Vick's
notoriety would provide non-stop media coverage of the site, and the new league
could attract some NFL fans who believe that the "real" pro football league has
been too harsh with Vick.
And that's why we think that the
NFL would be inclined to ask the Falcons to squat on Vick's rights during any
incarceration and ensuing suspension. To be clear, Vick wouldn't be paid
-- his contract would be tolled and it would cost virtually nothing to keep him
on the payroll. But it would allow the Falcons and the NFL to prevent Vick
from playing for anyone else while still under contract with the NFL.
This reality could push Goodell to
impose a multi-year suspension to be served after Vick gets out of jail, which
would mean that Vick would be well over the age of 30 when he is able to return
to the NFL or any other league. And, by that time, the UFL could be long
gone.
POSTED 7:49
p.m. EDT, August 22, 2007
CFL NOT EXPECTED TO BE
INTERESTED IN VICK
Though many (including us) has
assumed that Mike Vick might have to head to Canada in order to continue his
football career after being released from federal custody, a CFL source tells us
that the NFL's northern cousin won't be the avenue for Vick's second chance.
Currently, no CFL teams holds the
negotiating rights to Mike Vick, which is a prerequisite to signing him.
And, as several readers have told
us, the felony charges to which Vick will plead guilty will prevent him from
entering Canada. Technically, however, a felon can enter Canada,
but must first get permission.
Still, the CFL has gotten
sensitive to the appearance that it is a haven for wayward NFL players, and we
have a strong feeling that Vick won't find a home there. He's more likely
to find refuge in the UFL, which could use Vick to attract NFL fans who believe
that the league is being unfair by imposing a stiff suspension on him and/or
blackballing him.
Taking that a step farther, it
could be that the league asks the Falcons to squat on Vick's rights during his
incarceration and suspension, since the Falcons would then be permitted to go
Pacman on Mike if he were to try to play in another football league while on
suspension from the NFL. Then after Mike is cleared to return to the NFL,
the Falcons could cut him.
POSTED 6:23
p.m. EDT, August 22, 2007
DID NFL ASK FEDS TO GIVE VICK A
DEAL?
One of the questions making the
rounds in league circles regarding the Mike Vick situation is this: If the
feds had such a great case against Vick, why did they offer him a plea deal?
This question has spawned the
theory/hypothesis/speculation that the NFL privately plowed political
connections to get Vick a reasonable offer, in order to avoid the damage that a
public trial of Vick would have done to the league.
We're not sure that we buy this,
but it's definitely being discussed in league circles. Though the NFL has
vast influence, we can't imagine the league being able to influence a federal
prosecutor who is ready and willing to go after Vick as hard as possible,
especially in the wake of the debacle that occurred earlier this year in the
wake of the firing of various federal prosecutors who supposedly weren't playing
ball with the politicos.
Still, it's hard not to wonder why
the feds didn't go all in on this one.
POSTED 3:54 p.m. EDT, August 22, 2007
ATLANTA NAACP STILL SUPPORTS
VICK by Michael David Smith
The head of the Atlanta chapter of
the NAACP thinks Michael Vick should be allowed to return to the Falcons after
serving his prison sentence.
"As a society, we should aid in his rehabilitation and
welcome a new Michael Vick back into the community without a permanent loss
of his career in football," said R.L. White, president of the NAACP's Atlanta
chapter, according to the Associated Press. "We further ask the NFL,
Falcons, and the sponsors not to permanently ban Mr. Vick from his ability to
bring hours of enjoyment to fans all over this country."
White said Vick has made a mistake and should be allowed to prove that he has
learned from that mistake.
White is wrong on a number of
levels. First of all, saying that society should rehabilitate criminals is a
very different thing from saying that criminals are entitled to get their jobs
back as if nothing had happened as soon as they get out of prison. If an NAACP
employee committed a crime that caused harm to the NAACP's reputation, and then
had to miss a year or more of work to serve a prison sentence, is White really
saying the NAACP wouldn't take any action against that employee?
Secondly, Vick didn't make "a
mistake." He broke many laws, many times, and still has not shown any remorse at
all. No one seriously believes he's pleading guilty because he feels guilt;
everyone knows he's pleading guilty because he knows the government has
overwhelming evidence to use against him at trial.
The NAACP has a long history of
speaking up for innocent people who don't have the means to speak up for
themselves. What does White think he's accomplishing by speaking up for a guilty
person who does have the means to speak up for himself?
POSTED 10:45 a.m. EDT, August 22, 2007
VICK COULD CLEAN TOILETS FOR 12
CENTS AN HOUR by Michael
David Smith
Dave Forster of The
Virginian-Pilot reports today that the federal prison sentence Michael Vick
is likely to serve will feature a lifestyle of jobs like
mopping floors for 12 cents an hour and living in a dorm with 100 other
inmates.
Forster quotes Mike Truman, a spokesman for the Federal Bureau of Prisons, who
says that many factors go into determining where to place an inmate, but someone
with a relatively short sentence and no previous criminal convictions would
likely be sent to a minimum security camp within 500 miles of his home address.
But a minimum security camp isn't
a country club. Barring an illness preventing him from working, every inmate
must have a job, which might include waxing or mopping floors, cleaning toilets,
painting walls or cutting grass. Inmates get paid for their work, at a rate of
12 cents an hour. Vick can buy items like shoes and sweat suits from the
commissary, and while he's not limited to buying whatever he can afford on his
12-cents-an-hour job, he also can't spend much beyond that. Inmates are
held to spending limits of about $290 a month at the commissary, Forster
reports.
A big question about Vick's prison
sentence is whether he'll be able to stay in shape. Forster reports that most
federal prisons have a running track and a basketball court. Some locations have
weight rooms; others don't. In any event, Vick won't be getting the kind of
training he's accustomed to as a professional athlete.
Will Vick be able to watch NFL
games from behind bars? Probably some, as dorms typically have two televisions.
But Monday Night Football might be out: Not all facilities have cable.
COULD VICK BE FORCED INTO
BANKRUPTCY?
by Michael David Smith
Michael Vick will most likely
never collect another NFL paycheck. And he may be forced to write the Falcons a
very large check, for more than $28 million in bonus money the team has already
paid him.
But that might not be the end of
Vick's financial woes. Vick has damaged the reputations of the companies that
had endorsement contracts with him, and he's cost them money in products and
marketing campaigns tied to him that they won't be able to use. Nike, for
example, was all set to roll out the new Zoom Vick V shoe before Vick's
indictment
led them to halt the campaign.
That leads to the question of
whether companies might be able to sue him for damages to their brands resulting
from his conduct. Some endorsement contracts specifically mention this
possibility; the specific language of Vick's endorsement deals is not known.
Although Nike might decide that
going after Vick would just create more headlines that would remind people that
it was once closely associated with him, it would be completely reasonable for
Nike and other companies to expect Vick to compensate them for what he's cost
them.
If the Falcons, Nike and others
line up to try to get money from Vick, he could be forced to file for
bankruptcy. Vick doesn't seem like the type of savvy investor who would have
tens of millions of dollars saved up in a rainy day fund, and it seems extremely
unlikely that he would be able to withstand such claims against him.
It wouldn't be unprecedented for a
man who was once among the highest-paid athletes in the world to go broke. Mike
Tyson earned around $300 million in his boxing career, and he ended up filing
for bankruptcy. Vick may follow in Tyson's footsteps.
STEPHON MARBURY DOESN'T GET IT
(OR MAYBE HE DOES)
Though we otherwise have no use
for the NBA or anyone associated with it, we couldn't help but notice (thanks to
a reader who pointed them out to us) the comments of Stephon Marbury regarding
Mike Vick.
Count Marbury among the Clinton
Portises of the world, who think that dog fighting is no big deal.
Said Marbury, while promoting his
latest line of low-cost sneakers: "They
don't say anything about people who shoot deers or shoot other animals.
You know, I mean, from what I hear, dog fighting is a sport. It's just
behind closed doors."
Here's the difference, Stephon.
Hunting "deers" is legal. Fighting dogs is not. If people who live
in the U.S. don't agree with that aspect of our legal system, then the
alternative is to move to a country where dog fighting doesn't have to happen
"behind closed doors," because it's perfectly legal there.
Excuse us for being cynical, but
we have a feeling that Marbury is saying what he's saying in the hopes of
getting some of the folks who blindly support Vick (even after he has admitted
guilt) to devote some money that would have gone to high-priced Nike shoes with
Vick's name on them to the cut-rate offerings
marketed by Marbury.
But we can tell you this -- Florio
Jr. has two pairs of Starbury shoes. And they'll be the last ones he ever
gets.
WARRICK KNOWS THAT VICK IS DONE
At a time when multiple Falcons
players are falling all over themselves to pledge unconditional loyalty to a man
who has been living a warped dual life for years, spending his time away from
the gridiron as a breeder and trainer of fighting dogs, at least one member of
the team realizes what Monday's events mean.
Still, others are taking up for a
man who got his jollies watching dogs rip each other to shreds.
"Michael is a human being," tight
end Crumpler said. "People have been trying to dehumanize him. But he's
hurting. I know that. Believe me, he's hurting."
Um, Alge? We know you're
upset that the guy who looked to you as soon as he felt the slightest pressure
in the pocket and ran out of it won't be there to help you justify that big
contract you received, but please don't tell us that anyone has been trying to
"dehumanize" Mike Vick. He dehumanized himself when he opted to act like
something less than a human being by subjecting animals he professed to love to
cruel activities, killing in cold blood those who were judged to be unfit to
fight.
Meanwhile, we've heard that other
current and former Vick teammates are carrying his dog-drowning water even after
the revelation that Vick necessarily lied to them and the rest of us by claiming
that he had nothing to do with the thing to which he now admits involvement.
We've received several e-mails complaining about the nonsensical ramblings of
Ray Buchanan, who told FOX Sports Radio colleague Chris Landry in April that
Vick fights dogs and who then tried to deny it while saying that even if he
thought that Vick was a dog fighter he wouldn't snitch on him.
But Buchanan's recent words mirror
those of many others who refuse to recognize the realities of this case.
Dog fighting is illegal. Gambling is illegal. Vick was immersed in
the dog fighting and gambling lifestyle for years. But yet people are
attacking the system for picking on Vick when, for example, Rams defensive end
Leonard Little served only 90 days after killing Susan Gutweiler in 1998,
followed by an eight-game suspension.
The fact that Little got off easy
doesn't mean that Vick should, too. We've complained for years about the
manner in which Little's situation was handled, and we're convinced that, if
someone like Little were to kill someone while driving drunk in 2007, the
consequences from an NFL standpoint would be far more dire.
Justice really is blind.
Though some claim in defense of Vick that the laws are in some way slanted
against African-Americans, it's simply not true. The law does not
discriminate on the basis of race. That said, rich people usually can
afford far more skilled counsel than those who aren't. The fact that the
evidence in this case was strong enough to prevent even the best lawyers that
money could buy from even trying to mount a defense should help to persuade
anyone and everyone that Vick really is guilty, and that our sports heroes
really can be capable of barbaric acts when out of the spotlight.
And it's all the more reason for
our society to stop putting someone on a pedestal simply because he can run
really fast or throw a ball hard.
PFTV ON VICK
We intended to put this up on
Monday, but technical difficulties prevented up from doing so.
Still, the Vick issue is still a
red-hot subject. So, in other words, watch the damn thing.
If nothing else, we conjugated
most of the verbs properly.
POSTED 11:28
a.m. EDT, August 21, 2007
POINDEXTER PLANS TO PROSECUTE
A major factor in the final
outcome of the entire Mike Vick legal imbroglio is what will happen to him under
Virginia law. Though several readers have raised with us the notion of
"double jeopardy," Vick has not faced animal cruelty charges under state law.
The feds had no jurisdiction over such crimes, since they happened only in
Virginia. For now, Vick has pleaded guilty only to conspiracy to violate
several federal statutes dealing with interstate gambling and interstate dog
fighting. He has never been placed in jeopardy for animal cruelty charges.
And, if the statement of facts he
signs on August 27 includes an admission that he participated in the killing of
the eight dogs that Quanis Phillips and Purnell Peace admitted to killing with
Vick, then it will be very easy to prove that Vick violated Virginia law.
We used to think that Poindexter
was dragging his feet on Vick because Poindexter, a part-time prosecutor in his
60s, didn't want to face an O.J.-style dream team. But the challenge is
now far easier than it would have been, and if Poindexter doesn't push forward
aggressively, we'll conclude that his motives arise from corruption, not from
sloth.
LESTER MUNSON'S HIT STREAK IS
OVER
We'd been impressed by the work of
ESPN.com's Lester Munson during the Mike Vick situation. Munson has a
knack for making legal concepts readily understandable, using an easy-to-read
question-and-answer format.
But we've got to take issue with
the last entry in Munson's latest submission:
"The local
prosecutor in Surry County, Va., where Vick built his
dogfighting compound, says he will now take action against
Vick. What can he do to Vick that the federal
authorities haven't already done?
"Gerald
Poindexter, the local prosecutor, can huff and puff and seek
attention, but that's about it.
Vick need not worry much about Poindexter. The
federal authorities have the seven witnesses, the financial
records, the e-mails and all the other evidence.
Poindexter can charge Vick with dogfighting under a Virginia
law that makes it a felony, but any punishment the player
might serve on that charge would be done at the same time
Vick is serving his federal sentence. Poindexter
appears to be a bit embarrassed that the feds took over an
investigation that he had started, and so whatever action he
ultimately takes might be motivated, at least in part, by a
desire to save face."
Lester, have
you gone mad? If Vick admits to participating in the
killing of eight dogs deemed unfit for fighting, he's on the
hook for eight counts of animal cruelty, at a maximum prison
sentence of five years each.
And Poindexter
won't need the "seven witnesses, the financial records, the
e-mails and all the other evidence." All Poindexter
will need is the signed statement of facts, and it's a
one-day, one-exhibit trial.
"I killed
eight dogs."
Case closed.
Lester, what
the hell are you thinking?
POSTED 9:36
a.m. EDT; LAST UPDATED 10:10 a.m. EDT, August 21, 2007
THERE SHOULD BE NO SECOND
CHANCE FOR VICK
Though we're going to wait to see
the statement of facts that Mike Vick signs on August 27, we will presume for
now that it will contain an admission from Vick as to his involvement in the
killing of eight dogs in April 2007 who were deemed to be unfit for fighting.
We think that this is a fair presumption to make, because two of his
codefendants admitted to participating in these activities, and said that Vick
was involved, too. Thus, our guess is that federal prosecutors have
pre-drafted Vick's statement of facts to include such an admission,
and that prosecutors have made it clear to him that signing the document as
written is a condition for accepting the plea offer.
So, if that's true, Vick will be
admitting not only to being an illegal gambler and a dog fighter, but also to
killing canines in cold blood. Man's best friend. The things that Vick has said he
loves. Remember this?
As many talking heads already are
saying, Vick's decision to plead guilty and, more importantly, to admit guilt is
the first step in his quest for redemption. As Tom Jackson correctly said on ESPN's
Monday Night Countdown on (duh) Monday night, we are a society that loves
to give second chances.
But some people don't get second
chances in our society. Pedophiles don't get second chances. Mass
murderers don't get second chances (largely because they never get out of jail).
Even today, some 40 years after the commission of his crimes, would anyone give Charles Manson
anything other than a minimum-wage job if he were to find
himself again among the free?
Though our society has never had
the occasion to consider whether to give a second chance to a star athlete who
admits to killing dogs, we think that no second chance should be available to
Mike Vick, and we hope to hear from the "real" media plenty of skepticism regarding Vick's apparent effort to lay the
foundation for his redemption by authorizing his lawyer to issue a statement in
which Mike acknowledges the "mistakes he has made."
Folks, this wasn't a bad decision
made in a night club under the influence of Grey Goose. This "mistake" was
a lifestyle that unfolded over a period of years. It's something
that Vick likely would still be doing if his property in Virginia hadn't been searched by authorities in late April.
And after the operation was found,
what did Vick do? Did he take responsibility then? No -- he blamed
his friends and family.
"I'm never there. I'm never
at the house. I left the house with my family members and my cousin.
They just haven't been doing the right thing. The issue will get
resolved."
Oh, it has been resolved, Mike.
It surely has been resolved.
Folks, he lied. To you, to the Commissioner,
and to the man who has paid him millions of dollars.
And then Vick hunkered down, using
the notion of innocent until proven guilty -- a principle aimed only at
protecting the truly innocent -- to force local and federal officials to marshal
enough evidence before Vick would even consider admitting that he'd been caught.
He almost got lucky. Surry
County prosecutor Gerald Poindexter was, by all appearances, ready and willing
to sweep all of this under the rug, until federal authorities wisely got
involved.
Then, when Vick was indicted by a
federal grand jury, he
continued to remain silent. His lawyer professed his innocence on the
courthouse steps, but in a
perfunctory way that convinced no one who wasn't already predisposed to
believing that Vick was clean.
It was only after Quanis Phillips
and Purnell Peace pleaded guilty that Vick even began to ponder the
possibility of coming clean. And he only "did the right thing" after
trying to get the best deal possible for doing it.
Look, we've got no problem with a
guy engaging in aggressive plea negotiations in an effort to come out of the
discussions with the most positive (or, as the case may be least negative)
outcome, it's unfair and inappropriate for Vick to sell this as acceptance of
full responsibility.
The notion of accepting full
responsibility implies that Vick has done something honorable. But there is no
honor in Vick's
actions. He cried "uncle" as his arm was about to be snapped off.
Other members of the media ("real"
or otherwise) might be sufficiently naive to be buffaloed by this. But not
us. And we hope that any NFL team that might be seduced by Vick's superb
but primarily one-dimensional skills in 2010 or thereafter will consider the
situation very carefully before giving this man a second chance that, in our
view, he simply does not deserve.
So maybe the right outcome here is
for the Commissioner to protect all future owners and coaches and G.M.'s from
themselves by banning Vick for life.
POSTED 4:56
p.m. EDT; LAST UPDATED 7:31 p.m. EDT, August 20, 2007
NFL SPEAKS ON VICK
The National Football League has
issued the following statement regarding Mike Vick:
"We
are aware of Michael Vick's decision to enter a guilty plea to the federal
charges against him and accept responsibility for his conduct. We totally
condemn the conduct outlined in the charges, which is inconsistent with what
Michael Vick previously told both our office and the Falcons. We will
conclude our own review under the league’s personal conduct policy as soon as
possible. In the meantime, we have asked the Falcons to continue to refrain
from taking action pending a decision by the commissioner."
The league's
statement doesn't address possible violations of the gambling policy but, it's
likely that a separate review will be conducted within the confines of that
specific rule.
The difference
between the two provisions is that Vick would have the ability to pursue a
grievance regarding any penalties imposed under the gambling policy. Under
the Personal Conduct Policy, the Commissioner is the judge, jury, executioner,
court reporter, bailiff, and appellate court.
POSTED 4:34
p.m. EDT, August 20, 2007
WHAT NEXT FOR VICK?
With Mike Vick agreeing to plead
guilty to federal conspiracy charges, what will transpire next? Read on
for our take on the coming developments.
First, Vick will officially enter
his plea on August 27. At that time, he will sign a statement of facts
similar to the document that Quanis Phillips and Purnell Peace signed on Friday,
with detailed admissions. The biggest question? Whether the document
will include an acknowledgement from Vick that he participated in the killing of
eight dogs in April 2007.
Second, if the statement of facts
contains an admission as to the killing of the eight dogs, Vick will be giving
Surry County, Virginia prosecutor Gerald Poindexter all he needs to obtain a
conviction on eight counts of violating Virginia's animal cruelty laws.
Under Virginia law, he faces up to 40 years in jail.
Third, the NFL will be acting at
some point, probably soon. Look for Vick to be suspended indefinitely,
with a final decision made after Vick submits his signed statement of facts.
Our guess? He'll be suspended for at least one year for dog fighting, and
at least one year for gambling. Also, we think that any suspension will be
tolled during his incarceration.
Fourth, the Falcons need to decide
how to handle the situation. Though many will expect owner Arthur Blank to
cut him as soon as Commissioner Roger Goodell allows the team to proceed, the
Falcons need to wait until Vick defaults on his contract so that the team can
recover, as we calculate it, more than $28 million in paid bonus money.
The broader question is whether the Falcons must carry Vick on the roster during
the term of his suspension in order to collect all of the $28 million, since the
bonus money applies to future years of the contract that have not yet been
served.
At some point, Arthur Blank must
decide whether his desire to get his money back supersedes his desire to get
Vick off of the team.
The Virginian-Pilot reports
that Michael Vick has accepted a
plea deal on federal conspiracy charges. But it's more than just a
guilty plea. Vick is admitting that he did it. A statement from
lawyer Billy Martin reads as follows:
"After consulting with his family
over the weekend, Michael Vick ask that I announce today that he has reached an
agreement with Federal prosecutors regarding the charges pending against him.
Mr. Vick has agreed to enter a plea of Guilty to those charges and to
accept full
responsibility for his actions and the mistakes he has made. Michael
wishes to apologizes again to everyone who has been hurt by this matter.
The legal team and Mr. Vick will appear in court in Richmond on August 27th."
It's a far cry from Martin's
initial statements regarding the case from July 23, when Martin had this to say:
"You all heard and
saw that this was the first step from Michael in proving his innocence.
The indictment contains mere allegations."
In our view, Vick came clean
because he realizes that there's no way he can ever return to the NFL without
securing redemption, and that there can be no redemption without contrition.
The broader question is whether
redemption is even available with contrition. Should he get credit for
telling the truth only after it was clear that there was no way out? We
don't think so.
It's unclear whether the deal
includes any type of commitment from the NFL as to Vick's possible suspension,
or any commitment from authorities in Virginia regarding possible charges for
animal cruelty arising from eight dogs that were killed on Vick's property in
April 2007, the same month in which Vick told the Commissioner that there was no
dog fighting on his Surry County, Virginia property. If Vick's formal plea
documents include an admission that he participated in the killings of the dogs,
he's certain to face even more jail time in Virginia, where the total penalty
will be up to 40 years.
The plea will be entered on August
27, at 10:30 a.m. EDT.
POSTED 1:23
p.m. EDT, August 20, 2007
NEGOTIATIONS CONTINUE?
Though it appears that Mike Vick
has opted not to plead guilty to pending federal conspiracy charges, CNN
suggests that
talks are ongoing.
Per CNN, the pending offer
recommends a prison term of 18-36 months. Vick's lawyers are holding out
for a recommended term of less than a year. Regardless, Judge Henry Hudson
will have the final say on this.
CNN also reports that the Vick
camp is hoping to hear from the NFL on Monday about the potential impact of a
guilty plea on Vick's playing career. However, the league previously has
indicated that it will not make such commitments in connection with the plea
discussions.
POSTED 1:10
p.m. EDT, August 20, 2007
VICK PLEA DEAL WON'T BE
ACCEPTED UNTIL AUGUST 27, AT THE EARLIEST
WSB-TV in Atlanta reports that a
hearing before Judge Henry Hudson on any plea deal involving Falcons quarterback
Mike Vick would not
occur before Monday, August 27.
The reason for this delay is that,
before a hearing can be scheduled, there has to be a deal. As of yet,
there is no deal.
Though the delay isn't
significant, the real news here is that, if there's a deal, the judge presiding
over the case hasn't been told about it. And that suggests that there is
no deal.
It makes us wonder whether there
even will be. At some point, prosecutors will pull the offer off of the
table and proceed.
Of course, it's possible that the
offer has been yanked, but that the Vick camp has yet to leak this fact to the
media. Don't count on the prosecutors saying anything more about this
until the new indictment, with new charges, is announced.
POSTED 10:11
a.m. EDT; LAST UPDATED 10:44 a.m. EDT, August 20, 2007
IS VICK GOING ALL IN?
With much uncertainty surrounding
the outcome of an NFL suspension and possible Virginia charges, it could be that
Mike Vick has opted to reject (for now) the possibility of pleading guilty to
pending federal charges.
If Vick's primary motivation is to
get back onto the football field, and if there's no way of knowing when that
will happen if he agrees to the pending plea offer, the only way that Vick will
be able to return is by fighting the current charges (and any new counts) in the
hopes of securing an acquittal.
If Vick pleads guilty, he likely
won't be back in the NFL until 2009, at the very earliest. In fact, 2010
might be the more realistic season in which he would be allowed to return after
spending a year or so in jail (which will wipe out, by the time his term starts,
all of the 2007 and 2008 seasons) and after serving a post-prison suspension of
one year.
If the suspension is stiffer, Vick
waits even longer.
So while he'll be likely to face
more than 20 years behind bars once he is indicted on the underlying federal
violations that, for now, he is only charged with conspiring to commit, the
quickest path back to the NFL is to fight the charges and win.
The stakes, of course, couldn't be
higher. If Vick is convicted on all charges, he's looking at a long, long
time behind bars -- possibly more than a decade.
On Friday, one of Vick's lawyers
said that there is no deadline for accepting the plea deal, but that prosecutors
wanted to wrap the thing up by the end of last week. Logic and common
sense suggest that, with no deal announced as of Monday morning, Vick has
decided to pass on the offer.
In fact, it's possible that the
offer is no longer on the table.
If so, the federal authorities
will move forward, with only one defendant on whom to focus. And our guess
is that they will be even more determined and zealous in their pursuit of Vick,
because the prosecutors surely believe that they made him a fair offer, which
they likewise believe should have been accepted.
Moving forward, a new indictment
likely will mean a new trial date. Our present guess is that the case will
be set to start in early January, making it a direct distraction from the NFL
postseason.
Also, look for Commissioner Roger
Goodell to suspend Vick for the 2007 season within the next two weeks.
Although former U.S. Attorney Eric Holder apparently has not yet submitted a
final report to Goodell, the admissions signed on Friday by Quanis Phillips and
Purnell Peace give the Commish all the ammo he needs to eject Vick from the game
for the 2007 season, with further penalties possible based on the evidence
presented at trial.
The bottom line? If Vick
goes all in on these charges, he'll either play in the NFL in 2008. Or
never again. With no way of knowing when or if a guilty plea on current
charges would allow him to return to the league, and with pro football such a
huge part of his identity, it's starting to look like that's the path he will
choose.
Peter King of NBC reports that
Mike Vick, if he pleads guilty, won't roll over on other NFL players who might
be involved in dog fighting.
But what if giving up the goods as
to what he knows about dog fighting and the associated gambling activities is
part of the plea offer that's on the table? We suppose that he could try
to say "I don't know" when it comes to NFL players, but if the feds expect him
to come clean and he tries to zip his lips, the plug could be pulled on the plea
bargain.
King's report came as part of an
insightful halftime discussion during NBC's Sunday night game between the Ravens
and the Giants. Cris Collinsworth raised the gambling angle, and King said
that the NFL is as concerned, and possibly more concerned, about the gambling
angle than the dog-fighting aspect of the case.
King also said that any suspension
from the NFL most likely will begin after Vick gets out of prison.
And Tiki Barber suggested that, if
Vick names names regarding other players who are involved in dog fighting, Vick
would never be accepted in another NFL locker room.
So, Tiki, are you saying that NFL
players don't like it when one of their own speaks out of school? Such as,
for example,
commenting on another player's contract? Or criticizing teammates
and/or coaches to the press? You mean like that, Tiki?
As Tiki's new on-air teammate
Peter King wrote less than two years ago after Tiki ripped the coaching staff
following a playoff loss, "It
was a bad decision to make that statement. Just as you don't impugn
your quarterback for a lousy game (and Eli Manning was a lot worse on Sunday
than Tom Coughlin), you don't rip your coaching staff, even if you think it did
a bad job. Hey, I love to see people speaking the truth, and if Barber
believes what he said, good for us. Great story. But I also think
it's something you don't do as a team guy."
Breaking news, folks -- Len
Pasquarelli of ESPN.com reports that Mike Vick
still hasn't made
up his mind about whether to accept a plea agreement.
The rest of Len's piece reads a
lot like various of the items that we've posted over the past week or so
regarding the Vick situation.
Possible gambling charges (the new
"real" media buzzword for avoiding the "G" word is "racketeering") in a new
indictment? Check.
Potential Virginia charges
entailing up to 40 years in prison? Check.
No commitment from Virginia
authorities as part of the plea bargain? Check.
Vick wanting to know as much as
possible about his overall situation before taking the deal from federal
prosecutors? Check.
The only new revelation in Len's
article is that Vick's folks have been talking to Virginia authorities in
conjunction with the ongoing negotiations with federal officials. But why
would Surry County prosecutor Gerald Poindexter agree not to pursue charges of
animal cruelty against Vick as part of the deal with the feds?
Did Poindexter agree not to
prosecute Purnell Peace and Quanis Phillips? As part of their federal
pleas, they both signed paperwork which amounts to a confession as to eight
counts of animal cruelty. It would be grossly unfair and unjust for Vick
to get a better deal than the guys who pleaded guilty before him.
Many people have expressed to us
suspicion that Poindexter is trying to help Vick. We've resisted reaching
such opinions; we believed that Poindexter merely hoped to avoid a protracted
trial against an O.J.-style dream team. But if Poindexter insists on no
Virginia jail time as part of a deal in which Vick, like Peace and Phillips,
admits to killing eight dogs, Poindexter should be removed from office,
immediately.
One last point -- why do we
suddenly get the feeling that Vick and company are trying to dictate the terms
under which he'll accept a plea? Frankly, we're surprised that federal
prosecutors are letting this drag on, and we hope that at some point soon they
tell him that, if he doesn't take the deal now, they'll see him in court later.
Adam Schefter of NFL Network
reports that
no plea agreement is expected from Falcons quarterback Mike Vick on Friday
night or for the rest of the weekend.
Per Schefter, the plea watch will
start again on Monday.
Meanwhile, it's increasingly clear
that Falcons owner Arthur Blank isn't buying the notion that Vick is innocent.
"It's sad that those allegations exist and now they are confirmed by others,"
said Blank. "It's sad that Michael has put himself into that kind of
situation. It's his responsibility for putting himself into that
situation. . . . From a personal perspective, it's just very sad.
It's distressing after six years spending time with somebody, you think you know
them and then there's another side that is shocking to all of us."
ESPN reports that Falcons owner
Arthur Blank expects Mike Vick to agree to plead guilty to federal conspiracy
charges on Friday night.
Subsequently, ESPN's Sal
Paolantonio interviewed Blank on the field at the Falcons' preseason game, and
Blank reiterated his belief in this regard.
Stay tuned.
POSTED 7:26
p.m. EDT, August 17, 2007
NO DEAL YET FOR VICK
With his three co-defendants
already pleading guilty to federal conspiracy charges, Mike Vick stands alone.
The supposed deadline for accepting a plea deal has come and gone. But it
was an artificial deadline; the game doesn't change until a grand jury indicts
Vick on new charges, based largely on the testimony of the guys who already have
flipped.
Meachum said that there have been
discussions between the legal team and prosecutors about the parameters of a
deal. He also said that there is no deadline, but that the prosecution
hoped too have a deal in place if at all by the end of the week.
Meachum also claims that Vick has
been "dehumanized" in the media, and that the team of lawyers have been too busy
to do P.R. work aimed at countering the criticism of their client.
Please. Vick had months to
get the P.R. machine rolling on this one, and it never happened. Besides,
why should lawyers be doing P.R. for a guy with the money to hire P.R.
specialists?
In the end, the answer could be
that Vick was simply too cheap to plunk down the money for some Manhattan-style
P.R. expertise.
Surry County, Virginia prosecutor
Gerald Poindexter tells the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he
intends to seek an indictment of Mike Vick when a grand jury convenes in
September.
"The execution of these
animals — and the manner in which they were executed — is startlingly
offensive and demanding of prosecution," Poindexter said.
With signed statements
from Quanis Phillips and Purnell Peace indicating that they, and Vick,
participated in the killing of eight dogs in April 2007, all that
Poindexter has to do is submit the statements to the grand jury and
indictments will flow.
In fact, we're wondering
whether the lawyers for Phillips and Peace realized that their clients
were admitting to facts that would subject each of them to up to an
additional 40 years in prison under Virginia law. Unless the
plea deal included a commitment from Poindexter that there will be no
state charges against Phillips or Peace, both men have potentially
signed away their freedom for a big chunk of their remaining lives.
Still, we don't think
that these statements from Phillips and Peace mean that Vick will
automatically be indicted. In fact, we wouldn't be surprised to
hear Poindexter eventually announce that the grand jury decided that
Phillips and Peace were not credible witnesses, and that therefore
Vick shouldn't be indicted on animal cruelty charges.
We also wouldn't be
surprised, given Poindexter's past handling of this matter, to see
quotes from him as early as tomorrow in which he says that he won't be
seeking an indictment of Vick.
FALCONS LIKELY WON'T
IMMEDIATELY CUT VICK
We need to clarify a
statement that appears below regarding the Falcons potential plans for
Vick if/when he pleads guilty to pending conspiracy charges.
If they cut him while he
is still on his current non-suspension suspension, the Falcons likely
would forfeit the ability to pursue more than $28 million in
previously paid bonus money. To date, he has not yet defaulted
on his contract, because his absence has been necessarily excused.
Our guess, then, is that
the league would immediately suspend Vick indefinitely, pending a
final decision after a full review of the case. After the
suspension is imposed, the first practice or preseason game that Vick
misses would put him in default on his contract. Once he's in
default, the Falcons would file a non-injury grievance for a refund of
the money, and then they would cut him.
POSTED 2:52
p.m. EDT, August 17, 2007
OUR TAKE: VICK WILL NEVER
PLAY IN THE NFL AGAIN
As we continue to hear various
members of the "real" media ponder the possible return of Mike Vick to the NFL
at some point in the future, we're becoming even more convinced that he'll never
play in the NFL again.
The final nail in Vick's NFL
coffin, we believe, comes from this passage from the statement of facts signed
by Quanis Phillips, a long-time Vick friend and associate who pleaded guilty on
Friday to federal conspiracy charges: "[Purnell] PEACE, PHILLIPS, and
VICK executed approximately 8 dogs that did not perform well in 'testing'
sessions at 1915 Moonlight Road by various methods, including hanging and
drowning. All three participated in executing the dogs. PHILLIPS
agrees and stipulates that these dogs all died as a result of the collective
efforts of PEACE, PHILLIPS, and VICK."
We are a society that loves
redemption. But there can be no redemption, in our opinion, from misdeeds
arising from messing with kids and dogs. Vick will try, possibly by
becoming the leading public voice against animal fighting. Still, we don't
think anyone will listen. His months of express and implied denials will
make his belated epiphany suspicious at best, and we're not sure that anything
he can say or do will ever erase mental images of the soon-to-be-former Falcons
quarterback killing canines.
Besides, we fully expect the Vick
spin machine to argue that Vick is actually innocent of all charges, but that he
pleaded guilty to avoid the uncertainty of going to prison for a much longer
period of time. Thus, without any true contrition from Vick, he's got no
chance at redemption.
Even if Vick somehow can achieve
redemption while his body is still young enough to play football, we're not
quite sure how he'll ever be able to rejoin an NFL team. As a couple of
readers have pointed out to us (and as we should have realized), Vick most
likely will have to be under contract to serve his suspension.
So if he pleads guilty and if the
Falcons promptly release him (as they should) and if Commissioner Roger Goodell
later imposes a one-year suspension, Vick will have to find a team that is
willing to take on the stigma of signing him at least one year before placating
the public by unleashing his talents.
It just won't happen.
Yes, in a league of 32 teams it
only takes one owner to say "yes," but let's give the folks who own these
franchises a little credit on this one. Though they all want to win
football games and make money, no amount of spit and polish will be able to
clean the ick off of Vick.
POSTED 10:07
a.m. EDT, August 17, 2007
PHILLIPS, PEACE ADMIT TO
KILLING DOGS WITH VICK
In a statement of facts signed in
connection with the guilty pleas entered on Friday morning by Purnell Peace and
Quanis Phillips, Peace and Phillips admit to participating with Vick in the
killing of eight dogs in April 2007, according to ESPN.
In our view, this means that
Virginia authorities now have the green light to proceed with an indictment of
Vick on eight counts of animal cruelty. Under Virginia law, he'd face up
to 40 years behind bars, in addition to any federal prison term that he serves.
The alleged involvement in killing
dogs is, in our view, proof positive that Vick will never be able to return to
the NFL.
ESPN also reports that Phillips
immediately was taken into custody because he failed a drug test while free on
bond.
POSTED 8:21
a.m. EDT; LAST UPDATED 8:43 a.m. EDT, August 17, 2007
CLOCK TICKS FOR VICK
Per published reports, Mike Vick
has until 9:00 a.m. EDT to accept a deal that would entail pleading guilty to
pending conspiracy charges in exchange for a recommendation by prosecutors of a
12-18 month jail term.
Vick's two remaining co-defendants
will be pleading guilty at 9:00 a.m. and 9:15 a.m., respectively.
If Vick doesn't take the deal, he
most likely will be indicted on more charges next week. There still has
been no mention (that we've seen) as to whether a guilty plea on federal charges
will include a commitment that he won't be prosecuted in Virginia for dog
fighting, animal cruelty, or gambling.
SUSPENSION SHOULD START AFTER
RELEASE
The NFL has made it clear that a
decision as to Mike Vick's punishment for violation of league policies won't be
made until after he pleads guilty to pending charges, if he indeed pleads
guilty.
But to the extent that Vick or
anyone else thinks that a suspension will be served while he is in prison, we
don't think it should be that simple or easy for him.
In order to make the suspension
have the intended deterrent effect on other players, the suspension should not
begin until after Vick is released from custody.
Commissioner Roger Goodell has
broad discretion in determining Vick's punishment. Under the Personal
Conduct Policy, Goodell has sole authority to fashion the penalty, and he
likewise is the person who will review the decision on appeal.
If Vick pleads guilty, he likely
won't be sentenced until November or December. If his jail term starts in
January 2008, he'll be unavailable for the entire 2008 season. If Goodell
imposes a one-year suspension that begins after Vick is released, Vick will be
knocked out for the 2009 campaign.
Though we don't think that Vick
will get a lifetime ban from Goodell, we think that it will be for at least two
years -- one year for dog fighting, and one year for gambling. If the
suspensions start after he gets out of jail, he won't be eligible to be back on
the field until 2011, when he'll be 31 years old.
Even then, we're not sure anyone
will sign him -- and we have a feeling that the NFL owners will be urged by the
powers-that-be never to bring Vick back to the league, since to do so would
provide a constant reminder of one of the most troubling player misconduct
episodes in NFL history.
POSTED 8:48
p.m. EDT, August 16, 2007
VICK JUDGE CLEARS MONDAY DOCKET
In a move that could be a sign
that Mike Vick has agreed to a guilty plea that will be entered on Monday, WSB-TV
in Atlanta reports that Judge Henry Hudson
has cleared his docket
for Monday, August 20.
Other hearings had been scheduled
for August 20, but are now gone.
Vick reportedly has until 9:00
a.m. on Friday, August 17 to decide whether to formally accept a plea offer.
If Vick does not accept the plea, prosecutors are expected to pursue additional
charges against Vick before a grand jury that convenes on Monday, presumably
based in part on testimony from Purnell Peace and Quanis Phillips, both of whom
will plead guilty on Friday morning.
POSTED 8:31
a.m. EDT, August 16, 2007
VICK'S DESIRE TO PLAY COULD GET
HIM TO PLEAD
The fact that a guilty plea on
pending conspiracy charges could result in a sentence in the range of 12 to 18
months for Mike Vick, and the strong possibility that new charges could push his
maximum stay (as we calculate it) to more than 20 years, likely would prompt
most reasonable persons to conclude that Vick should accept the deal -- barring
a high degree of confidence that a full acquittal could be obtained at trial.
The strong likelihood that Mike
Vick would never play pro football again if convicted on the stiffest potential
charge of maintaining an interstate gambling enterprise makes it even more
important for him to take the deal that's on the table, we believe.
Though ESPN's Chris Mortensen has
reported that the NFL isn't interested in participating in negotiations aimed at
securing for Vick both a certain prison sentence and a certain suspension, the
Richmond Times-Dispatch reports that Vick's legal team still
wants to know what kind of a penalty he'll face from the league if he pleads
guilty.
But while Vick would be pleading
only to federal conspiracy charges relating to gambling and dog fighting, the
league might decide to base Vick's ultimate sanction on facts that would be
relevant to the charges that have yet to be filed, either at the federal level
or at the state level. So it would be premature for the league to issue a
final decision about Vick's situation until there's time to explore every angle
of the case.
Meanwhile, we've seen no mention
in any of the media reports as to whether the possible charges based on
violation of Virginia's animal cruelty laws would be resolved as part of a
federal plea agreement. Vick currently is not indicted for participating
in the killing of dogs or with dog fighting under Virginia law, and absent a
comprehensive plea agreement he would still face prosecution there.
On one hand, the Vick legal team
might be counting on Surry County Gerald Poindexter to decide that Vick's
federal punishment is fair and sufficient, and that the investigation should be
closed. On the other hand, the backlash from a guilty plea on federal
conspiracy charges could prompt Virginia attorney general Bob McDonnell -- who
might run for governor in 2009 -- to personally take aim against Vick and his
co-defendants based on the allegations that eight dogs were killed in the
Commonwealth in April 2007.
It's one thing for a Virginia
politician to attack at a local hero while he's still a hero. It's quite
another thing to chase him down once he has become a pariah.
Though Vick "badly wants to get
back to the game" of football even if he must first serve time in prison, Vick
and his lawyers would be stoopid to think that taking this deal means that Mike
would be able to roll back into the NFL once he is released from custody.
Really, a return for the 2008
season is likely impossible, given that he wouldn't be sentenced until November
or December. If he only spends a year in prison, the earliest he'd be able
to come back to the NFL would be 2009.
And this assumes that the league
won't suspend him beyond the end of his prison stay, and that Virginia won't try
to put him away for up to 40 years for his alleged role in the killing those
eight dogs. As we see it, neither assumption is warranted at this point.
The Virginian-Pilot reports
that federal prosecutors
have offered to Mike Vick a plea deal that will include a recommendation of
a sentence of at least one year in prison.
Vick has until 9:00 a.m. EDT on
Friday, August 17 to accept the deal, or to face additional charges.
There were reports on Tuesday that
Vick's lawyers wanted a deal that would entail less than one year in jail.
Earlier on Wednesday, a report emerged that Vick's legal team is divided on
whether he should plead guilty. Our take on that specific information leak
is that the Vick P.R. machine (to the extent that there even is one)
realizes that news of such a split is necessary to support the eventual
conclusion that Vick didn't do it.
Dave Forster of the
Virginian-Pilot explained on MSNBC moments ago that Vick would be required
to plead guilty to the pending conspiracy charges, which include conspiracy to
maintain an interstate gambling operation and conspiracy to engage in interstate
dog fighting.
LEAGUE WON'T PLAY "LET'S MAKE A
DEAL"
Though Mike Vick's lawyers had
been shooting for a plea deal that would entail less than a year of jail for
Vick and a negotiated suspension with the NFL that would allow Vick to return to
pro football, Chris Mortensen of ESPN reports that Commissioner
Roger Goodell
"refuses" to engage in such negotiations.
Instead, the league will continue
with its own investigation, and will also monitor developments in court.
If Vick pleads guilty to
conspiracy charges based on interstate gambling, he could be on the wrong end of
a lifetime ban from the NFL.
Then again, the Commish probably
doesn't need to go that far. We simply can't imagine any team hoping to
make more money than it spends choosing to give Vick a chance to return to the
NFL. Ever.
POSTED 12:36 p.m. EDT, August 15, 2007
DEANGELO HALL COULD
TESTIFY
by
Michael David Smith
PFT Editor Mike Florio has checked
in to report that he's hearing from sources with knowledge of the investigation
that cornerback DeAngelo Hall could be the Falcons player called to testify if
quarterback Michael Vick goes on trial.
We previously noted that CBS 46 in
Atlanta is reporting that an unnamed teammate of Vick's, described as "a
prominent member of the team," could testify if Vick chooses to face a trial
rather than plead guilty.
Vick and Hall grew up in the same
area of Virginia, and both attended Virginia Tech. Vick is three years older
than Hall, and Hall has described Vick as a role model.
In an interview with the
Associated Press shortly after Vick was indicted, Hall said, "Mike
became Mike at Virginia Tech. ... Just seeing him in college, seeing him
grow and mature as a player, it was a beautiful thing. It’s one of the reasons I
decided to go to Tech.”
POSTED 9:20 a.m. EDT;
LAST UPDATED 10:17 a.m. EDT, August 15, 2007
FALCONS TEAMMATE TO
TESTIFY IN VICK CASE?
by
Michael David Smith
CBS 46 does not identify the
teammate, other than to call him "a prominent member of the team." The report
says the Falcons are aware of this angle to the story. It is not clear whether
the teammate would be a prosecution or defense witness.
If it's true that another Falcon
would be one of the witnesses, the NFL and Falcons owner Arthur Blank must be
hoping Vick pleads guilty. Even if the teammate did nothing wrong and would
testify truthfully about something he saw Vick do, the last thing they want is
more players dragged into this mess.
CBS 46 is also reporting that
Vick’s defense team is divided over whether Vick should plead guilty.
According to the report, sources
on Tuesday told Gil Tyree of CBS 46 that one part of the defense team wants to
reach a deal with prosecutors, while the other wants to go to trial.
PETRINO'S PRIVATE NUMBER WAS
FOUND AT VICK'S VIRGINIA HOUSE
A source with knowledge of the
Mike Vick investigation has shared with us some previously unknown details about
the situation.
Here's the kicker, in our view.
The feds' initial search of Mike Vick's house in Virginia turned up Falcons
coach Bobby Petrino's private phone number. The implication is obvious --
Vick goes to the property, and had been there this year, because Petrino was
hired in January 2007.
Compare that nugget to Vick's only
comments on the matter: "I never go there."
Also, the second federal search of
the Vick property in Surry County was aimed at confirming the reliability and
credibility of the informants. The dog carcasses found on the second dig
meshed with information given regarding the means of death; thus, an indictment
was obtained 10 days later.
SO WHO BOUGHT VICK'S HOUSE?
Once of the details that has
gotten lost in the shuffle during the past month or so since Mike Vick was
indicted on federal conspiracy charges is the sale of his property in Surry
County, Virginia, which apparently was never consummated.
A local business owner said that "heads
will turn" when the identity of the new owner is revealed.
It has never happened.
So who was it?
We've picked up some information
in this regard, but aren't quite ready to reveal the name. We might
ultimately have to hand it over to someone from the "real" media who is in a
position to confirm it.
But, yeah, heads will turn if what
we're hearing ends up being true.
ARE THERE FOLKS AT ESPN WHO
FEAR THE "G" WORD?
As we continue to monitor ESPN's
handling of the Mike Vick prosecution, we continue to see entire segments
devoted to the case that mention not once the fact that the more serious charge
that Vick presently faces is the claim that he conspired to maintain an
interstate gambling operation.
Just now on Man-Girl & Meatball
in the Morning (also known as "Mike and Mike"), Mike Greenberg and Michael
Smith (who should replace one of the two Mikes permanently, in our view) talked
at length with Roger Cossack about the possibility of a plea deal.
The word "gambling" wasn't uttered
once.
At one point, one of the Mikes
asked Cossack what Vick would be pleading guilty to if he does a deal. In
his response, Cossack seemed to be deliberately avoiding the fact that
conspiracy to maintain an interstate gambling enterprise is one of the three
statutes that Vick allegedly conspired to violate -- and thus one of only three
things to which we could plead guilty.
Also, there was no mention of the
fact that Vick's biggest risk in refusing to accept a plea is that a new
indictment will charge him with the underlying crime of interstate gambling,
which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years. Because dog fighting was a
mere misdemeanor at the time all of this went down, those charges have a maximum
sentence of only one year behind bars.
And, amazingly, a detailed graphic
shown during the Cossack interview that attempted to summarize the charges did
not contain the word "gambling."
With that said, we're told that
there have been some references to the gambling angle on ESPN. For
example, Chris Berman talked about the gambling aspect of the situation on
Monday Night Countdown this week.
Still, we're getting the distinct
impression that there are producers and on-air talent in Bristol who have
decided that it's not in their best interests to mention the "G" word in this
case.
But now that the Commissioner has
acknowledged the league's concern about the gambling aspect (which we continue
to hear is far more important to the federal government than the dog-fighting
component), why does any portion of the "real" media feel compelled not to
mention the gambling?
