Choke Collar Tightens Around Michael Vick's Neck

By Larry Nauss, SPM Assistant Editor (Commentary)
Posted Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Michael Vick - Photo Courtesy of NFL Media.

According to a report from NBC's Ron Mott today, Michael Vick may decide to plead guilty to federal dogfighting charges, but is seeking a plea agreement for less than one year of jail time, through negotiations between his defense attorneys and federal prosecutors.

The latest news in this sad commentary on human behavior was sparked by three of Vick's co-defendants rolling over and accepting plea agreements in exchange for their testimony against Vick at his trial. Vick has already pled not guilty to the charges specified in his federal indictment. His trial is tentatively set for November 26. That trial will likely never take place under the present set of legal circumstances that Vick faces.

With everybody else involved in the case lining up for a Vick skewering in court, Mike's now isolated on an island surrounded by man-eating sharks, in the form of federal (and state) prosecutors. He's not going to be able to scramble his way out of this one now, even with the best defense lawyers money can buy running interference for him, as his Atlanta Falcons offensive linemen once did.

The federal prosecutors are reportedly seeking more jail time than Vick's lawyers have proposed, in exchange for a guilty plea. On Wednesday, Vick spent most of the day huddled with his attorneys in an attempt to resolve the case against him. ESPN reports that the attorneys have recommended to Vick that he take the deal and run with it if the prosecution agrees to recommend less than one year of jail time.

Two of Vick's co-defendants have scheduled plea hearings on Friday of this week. They are expected to enter guilty pleas in exchange for lighter sentences and their promises to give testimony against Vick if his federal conspiracy to commit dogfighting case goes to trial.

A defense attorney spokesman for Vick indicated on Wednesday afternoon that, "the defense and Michael are meeting."

Meanwhile, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has been taking a wait-and-see attitude, depending upon the results of the league's own internal investigation of the dogfighting allegations.

Prosecutors are also indicating they will seek a 'superseding' indictment in the case, which will bring additional charges against Vick. If that happens, Vick will find himself in a much worse bargaining position than he does now.

One of Vick's co-defendants has reportedly signed an affidavit in connection with his own plea agreement. It indicates Vick was responsible for financing substantially all of the activities of his "Bad Newz Kennels" operation on the property owned by him in rural Surry County, Virginia, near the Tidewater region in the southeastern part of the state. Vick is a native of nearby Newport News, from which the name of his kennel is derived.

Vick has pled not guilty to federal charges of conspiracy to travel in interstate commerce for unlawful activities and conspiracy to sponsor an animal fighting business. The maximum sentence for conviction on such charges under federal court sentencing guidelines is up to five years in prison and up to $250,000.00 in fines.

Federal and state authorities have searched the property owned by Vick in Surry County, finding many pit bull dogs used in dogfighting, and various dogfighting paraphernalia. There's evidence that dogs which didn't perform well in dogfights were occasionally killed by hanging or electrocution.

Vick has already lost and probably will lose more corporate sponsorship deals over the case, which has garnered much notoriety among animal-rights activist groups, most notably PETA. Such groups have staged public protests outside of the Atlanta Falcon's facilities and also the federal courthouse in Richmond, Virginia, where the legal battle is playing out.

This situation is fast becoming a no-win for anybody involved, most notably the NFL. They're already reeling from bad-boy conduct by a number of their higher-profile players, most notably Adam "Pacman" Jones. He was suspended for one season by Goodell for being involved in multiple, criminal escapades, one of which resulting in a murder.

Goodell should drop the hammer on Vick and give him a lifetime suspension from the NFL. The league's rules allow for any person involved in gambling or a gambling enterprise to get a lifetime suspension. It's not nearly as bad as it sounds. He would still be eligible to apply for reinstatement, presuming he could meet all the requirements the league would impose upon him before considering letting him back in. The message the commissioner could send would be loud and clear: the league will no longer tolerate bad boy behavior from its players, either on or off the field.

One of the things folks involved in the despicable world of dogfighting use to train their animals is a wheel, similar to that used for walking horses to exercise them. Instead of horses tied to the wheel, dogfighting enthusiasts tie live or dead cats to the wheel, and then turn their fighting dogs loose on them for training.

If Vick pleads or is adjudged guilty of the charges against him, as part of his sentence, he ought to be tied to such a wheel, letting a couple of lions or tigers have at him for awhile. He might then serve out his jail sentence in a prison hospital ward. He should be made to feel like one of the unfortunate victims of the unimaginably cruel and bloodthirsty 'sport' of dogfighting that he apparently enjoys.

Animals suffer just as much as people do when they're mistreated, injured and/or killed. Any person who treats animals that way should suffer the same consequences.