The New Official Michael Vick Thread

[Psyblast]

Just a reminder: Topics such as RACE, RELIGION, and POLITICS are NOT allowed here at OS. Do not spoil another thread by delving into those aspects of this situation. ANYONE who does cross the line will take an immediate break from the forums.

With that said, the new developments:

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/story?id=2974225

Quote:

Two more plea deals spell serious trouble for Vick Two of Michael Vick's co-defendants in a massive dogfighting conspiracy indictment have indicated they will plead guilty and might testify against Vick in a trial that begins Nov. 26 in Richmond, Va. Purnell Peace, 35, and Quanis Phillips, 28, will appear before U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson later this week to admit their participation in a scheme of breeding, training, fighting and executing pit bull terriers that went on for six years in five states. Their actions raise a number of questions for Vick, who is considering his own plea. Here are some of the questions and the answers: What do these anticipated guilty pleas mean for Vick? These developments are terrible news for Vick. He already was caught in a bad situation with five witnesses ready to testify against him. The five included four who cooperated early with the government and helped federal prosecutors with the devastating details in the 18-page indictment. Then, two weeks ago, Tony Taylor, another of Vick's co-defendants, agreed to admit guilt and testify against Vick. Taylor, according to the indictment, worked with Vick to establish the dogfighting operation less than eight weeks after Vick signed his first NFL contract. Adding Peace and Phillips to these five witnesses leaves Vick in a legal checkmate. He is surrounded by hostile forces. There might be no escape from the brutal charges against him. Peace and Phillips are mentioned a total of 94 times in the indictment. Their testimony puts Vick in the middle of the scheme from its beginning in June 2001 until it ended with a police raid this past April. With seven witnesses lined up against him, what should Vick do? Vick should be assessing the same realities that led Peace and Phillips to plead guilty. Sources have told ESPN that Vick is deciding whether to consider the possibility a jail sentence of less than one year. Government prosecutors want a jail sentence of more than one year, according to ESPN sources, and Vick's lawyers have suggested to him that he seriously consider a jail sentence of less than one year. Vick has a difficult decision to make. Unless he is caught in some level of denial or delusion, Vick must be looking hard at the idea of admitting guilt and considering an outcome that would allow him to preserve some fraction of his career in the NFL. Vick has the money and the lawyers to put up a powerful fight, but they are up against a massive and impressive investigation as well as the seven witnesses. Billy Martin, Vick's lead lawyer, has done wonders in a courtroom, but the government's case against Vick provides scant opportunity for creating the kind of "reasonable doubt" that can lead to a not guilty verdict. A jury likely would be outraged by the brutality of the evidence and impressed with its substance and its gravity. It would not be a big surprise if Vick entered a guilty plea within the next several days. Why would Vick's friends and cohorts in the alleged dogfighting enterprise decide to admit their guilt? It must have been difficult for Peace and Phillips to decide to admit their culpability and agree to testify against Vick. It was Vick's name and money that made the alleged operation possible. Peace and Phillips are high school dropouts who, according to the indictment, performed various chores for Bad Newz Kennels for six years, enjoying the excitement of the dark side of celebrity. Without Vick, none of it would have been possible. Both must have felt they owed Vick something, but both decided to help themselves even if it meant hurting Vick. Their decisions will allow them to avoid the cost and the agony of a trial and reduce their possible time in prison. Their decisions were based on difficult realities. If the case goes to trial, the prosecutors will suggest that their decisions were painful acts of integrity that will help eradicate dogfighting in America. What will happen now to Peace and Phillips? When they appear in court in Richmond later this week, Peace and Phillips will present signed plea agreements to Hudson. They will promise to tell the entire truth about the alleged dogfighting operation to agents of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and federal prosecutors. In return, they will claim they are entitled to leniency in the sentences that result from their admissions. Both have prior criminal convictions and face serious prison time under federal sentencing guidelines. If they help the government and are not caught in any lies, they can expect their prison time to be cut in half. What's next? Can it get any worse for Vick? Yes, it could get worse in a hurry. The federal prosecutors in Richmond are preparing a new set of charges, known in legal terms as a superseding indictment. The new charges could come any day. The new charges might include a racketeering allegation under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (known as RICO). RICO originally was designed as a weapon against organized-crime hoodlums but has been used frequently in other prosecutions. A charge under RICO would make Vick's situation significantly worse. It would make the government's case against him easier to prove, and it would increase the prison sentence Vick would face if convicted.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=2972161

Quote:

Vick must decide whether to accept plea agreement Lawyers representing Michael Vick on federal dogfighting charges are trying to negotiate a plea agreement that would include less than the year of prison time that prosecutors have offered, ESPN learned on Tuesday. A source also said that Vick's attorneys have recommended that the embattled quarterback accept a deal if it includes less than a year of jail time, but he has not decided whether to fight the charges. Vick's situation became more tenous on Monday night when two more co-defendants decided to cooperate with the government. Purnell Peace and Quanis Phillips are scheduled to appear in federal court in Richmond on Friday to accept plea agreements. That clears them to testify against Vick. Collins R. Spencer III, a spokesman for Vick's lawyers, said they were surprised by the plea deals. "They didn't see it coming," Spencer said. Sources told ESPN's Kelly Naqi that Vick attorneys Larry Woodward and Billy Martin met with federal prosecutor Michael Gill and the investigators on Monday afternoon. In a Richmond, Va., court in late July, Vick pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to travel in interstate commerce in aid of unlawful activities, and conspiring to sponsor a dog in an animal fighting venture. He said in a written statement that he looked forward to "clearing my good name." He also pleaded with the public to resist a rush to judgment. Another of Vick's co-defendants, 34-year-old Tony Taylor, pleaded guilty to the same charges and has pledged to fully cooperate with the government in its prosecution of Vick and the two others. The plea deal requires Taylor to testify against Vick and his two remaining co-defendants if called upon to do so. A source close to the investigation told Naqi that Vick has until Friday to make up his mind whether to accept a plea agreement. Otherwise a superseding indictment will be filed and Vick will face at least two more federal dogfighting charges. Meanwhile, the NFL dismissed a report Sunday that said commissioner Roger Goodell was close to announcing a season-long suspension of Vick. Citing two sources within the league, Yahoo.com reported late Sunday night that Goodell will announce "this week or next" that Vick will be suspended for the 2007 season. "That's the direction it's going and has been from the time this started," one of the sources said this week, according to Yahoo. "The plan was to make sure it was announced before the season. Given what everybody has seen from what [league] security found and what the feds are telling us, there's really no choice." Eric Holder, a former deputy attorney general retained by the league, is still gathering facts on Vick's alleged involvement in dogfighting, NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said Monday. "The commissioner has not made any decision," Aiello said. The gruesome details outlined in the July 17 indictment have fueled public protests against Vick and prompted the suspension of some of his lucrative endorsement deals. The summary of facts signed by Taylor supports the indictment's claims that the dogfighting ring on Vick's property in Surry County, Va., executed underperforming dogs by drowning, hanging and other brutal means. Taylor admitted shooting one dog and electrocuting another when they did not perform well in test fights in the summer of 2002. Vick has been barred from Falcons training camp by Goodell while the league conducts its investigation. "While it is for the criminal justice system to determine your guilt or innocence, it is my responsibility as commissioner of the National Football League to determine whether your conduct, even if not criminal, nonetheless violated league policies, including the Personal Conduct Policy," Goodell said in a letter to the quarterback on July 24. Falcons coach Bobby Petrino said he has not spoken with his players about Vick's troubles since camp opened. "I'm not ready to respond to anything regarding Michael because I know nothing new," Petrino said. Falcons running back Warrick Dunn, Vick's teammate since 2002, said he recently spoke with the 27-year-old quarterback to offer support. Dunn added, however, that the players have no choice but to move ahead and prepare for the Sept. 9 season opener at Minnesota. "I don't think anybody on this team right now is hoping that Mike comes back," Dunn said. "If he comes back, that's great, but I just think right now we're at point where the guys that are here are trying to get better and move on down the road. Mike is going to be missed and has been missed, but at the same time you have to go on."

[skydog71]

Thanks for reopening the Vick discussion. Hopefully it will stay civil.

From these new developments, I'd say that Vick needs to work out some sort of plea deal, and accept that he's going to spend some time in jail. I think it's safe to say that a jury would go crazy with him. Considering that over 60% of Americans own pets, it's unlikely that he would gain much sympathy from potential jurors.

[Jackdog]

If his lawyer is smart,he would talk Vick into making a plea deal like his cronies. I agree with Skydog. A jury would eat him up. Plus if he decides to go to trial I think the Feds would dump more charges on him. Vick needs to do a year then try to mend his career.

[fsquid]

He has to take the plea. He has no other choice if he wants to have a life. I was quite surprised that his high dollar lawyer was amazed that the other two guys took a plea.

[TheMatrix31]

Michael's Dicked. A cheesy play-on-names is really all I have to offer.

But he is screwed.

[aukevin]

I think plea agreements are stupid. Maybe someone can change my opinion of it. But Vick keeps saying he's innocent, but instead now, he's might change his mind, plead guilty, and get a lesser sentence. Why does a plea of guilty before a trial warrant a lesser sentence than being found guilty in a trial? Is it because when someone pleas guilty the court doesn't have to deal with the time and costs of a trial? Should you reward someone for saving the court time even though they broke the law? Or is it because if someone is scared of a full sentencing they plea guilty to a different crime and then the court decides to forget about the bigger crime that the person was going to trial for? I don't see why pleaing guilty to one charge should allow other charges (and maybe even more serious charges) to be dropped. IMO that is all stupid and lazy.

But I'm no lawyer so I'm sure there is some reason that makes sense, not just some sugar-coated reason why it's ok to handle things that way.

[Jistic]

I can just see it now. He pleads guilty, then says afterward he was innocent but he just wanted to put it all behind him and move on with his life, the only thing he's guilty of is hanging around the wrong crowd, blah blah blah. Heard it all before.

[TheLetterZ]

:y4::y4::y4::y4::y4:

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,293268,00.html

Quote:

South Carolina Inmate Hits Michael Vick With '$63,000,000,000 Billion Dollar' Lawsuit Alleging Al Qaeda Ties Tuesday , August 14, 2007 Embattled NFL quarterback Michael Vick, facing federal charges related to his alleged participation in dogfighting, has been hit with a "$63,000,000,000 billion dollar" lawsuit filed by a South Carolina inmate who alleges the Atlanta Falcons star stole his pit bulls and sold them on eBay to buy "missiles from Iran," FOX News has learned. Jonathan Lee Riches filed the handwritten complaint over "theft and abuse of my animals" on July 23 in the U.S. District Court in Richmond, Va. • Click here to read the filing against Vick.(pdf) Riches alleges that Vick stole two white mixed pit bull dogs from his home in Holiday, Fla., and used them for dogfighting operations in Richmond, Va. The complaint goes on to allege that Vick sold the dogs on eBay and “used the proceeds to purchase missiles from the Iran government.” The complaint also alleges that Vick would need those missiles because he pledged allegiance to Al Qaeda in February of this year. “Michael Vick has to stop physically hurting my feelings and dashing my hopes,” Riches writes in the complaint. Riches wants $63 billion dollars “backed by gold and silver “ delivered to the front gates to the Williamsburg Federal Correctional facility in South Carolina. Riches is an inmate at the facility serving out a wire fraud conviction. FOXNews.com attempted to contact Vick, but neither he nor his spokesman could be reached for comment. Vick's attorneys, meanwhile, are negotiating a plea deal with federal prosecutors before new dogfighting charges are filed next week, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. • Click here for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution story. No plea agreement involving Atlanta Falcons quarterback Vick has been filed, according to the court clerk, FOX News has learned. Vick was accused of being involved in a dogfighting ring called "Bad Newz Kennels" run on property he owned in Surry County, Va. In late July, Vick pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to travel in interstate commerce in aid of unlawful activities, and conspiring to sponsor a dog in an animal fighting venture in a Richmond, Va., court. Vick could reach an agreement ahead of new charges expected to come down next week after two more of Vick's three co-defendants prepare to enter guilty pleas later this week. By reaching a plea agreement, Vick could avoid any additional charges. FOX News' Ian McCaleb contributed to this report.