Vick Indicted

[Maxx]

RICHMOND, Va. -- NFL star Michael Vick was indicted by a federal grand jury Tuesday on charges of sponsoring a dogfighting operation so grisly the losers either died in the pit or sometimes were electrocuted, drowned, hanged or shot.

The Atlanta Falcons quarterback and three others were charged with competitive dogfighting, procuring and training pit bulls for fighting and conducting the enterprise across state lines.

The operation was named "Bad Newz Kennels," according to the indictment, and the dogs were housed, trained and fought at a property owned by Vick in Surry County, Va.

The 18-page federal indictment, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, alleges the 27-year-old Vick and his co-defendants began the dogfighting operation in early 2001, the former Virginia Tech star's rookie year with the Falcons.

The indictment states that dogs fought to the death -- or close to it.

If convicted, Vick and the others -- Purnell A. Peace, Quanis L. Phillips and Tony Taylor -- could face up to six years in prison, $350,000 in fines and restitution.

Telephone messages left at the offices and home of Vick's attorney, Larry Woodward, were not returned. A woman who answered the phone at the home of Vick's mother said "no comment" and hung up.

"We are disappointed that Michael Vick has put himself in a position where a federal grand jury has returned an indictment against him," NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said.

"The activities alleged are cruel, degrading and illegal. Michael Vick's guilt has not yet been proven, and we believe that all concerned should allow the legal process to determine the facts."

Vick and the Falcons are scheduled to report to training camp on July 25.

"Obviously, we are disturbed by today's news," the team said in a statement posted on its Web site, apologizing to fans for the negative publicity.

"We will do the right thing for our club as the legal process plays out. We have a season to prepare for," it said.

John Goodwin of the Humane Society said the manner in which losing or unwilling dogs were killed was especially troubling.

The activities alleged are cruel, degrading and illegal. Michael Vick's guilt has not yet been proven, and we believe that all concerned should allow the legal process to determine the facts.

NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy

"Some of the grisly details in these filings shocked even me, and I'm a person who faces this stuff every day," he said. "I was surprised to see that they were killing dogs by hanging them and one dog was killed by slamming it to the ground. Those are extremely violent methods of execution -- they're unnecessary and just sick."

Vick and the others are accused of "knowingly sponsoring and exhibiting an animal fighting venture" and conducting a business enterprise involving gambling, as well as buying, transporting and receiving dogs for the purposes of an animal fighting venture.

About eight young dogs were put to death at the Surry County home after they were found not ready to fight in April 2007, the indictment said. They were killed "by hanging, drowning and/or slamming at least one dog's body to the ground."

The indictment also outlined a rough chronology:

• In March 2003, after a pit bull from Bad Newz Kennels lost in a fight, it said Peace consulted with Vick about the losing dog's condition, then executed it by wetting it with water and electrocuting it;

• In March 2003, after two Bad Newz Kennels dog lost fights to dogs owned by a cooperating witness, it alleged that Vick retrieved a bag containing $23,000 and gave it to the owner of the winning dogs. One of the fights had a $20,000 purse;

• In the fall of 2003, a person witnessing a dog fight involving one of the dogs trained by Bad Newz Kennels incurred the ire of another cooperating witness by yelling out Vick's name in front of the crowd during the fight.

It also said that after establishing Bad Newz Kennels in early 2002, Vick and the others obtained shirts and headbands promoting their affiliation with the kennel.

After a police raid on the property in April, Vick said he was rarely at the house, had no idea it may have been used in a criminal enterprise. He blamed family members for taking advantage of his generosity.

On Vick's Web site, he lists his birthplace as Newport News, "a.k.a. BadNews."

Purses for the fights ranged from hundreds of dollars to the thousands, and participants and spectators placed side bets, the document said.

Local authorities have been investigating the allegations since the April 25 drug raid at the property Vick owned. On June 7, officials with the Department of Agriculture executed their own search warrant and found the remains of seven dogs.

Surry County prosecutor Gerald G. Poindexter said he didn't know of the indictment before it was filed, and said he's not sure how the county will continue its case.

At the start, authorities seized 66 dogs, including 55 pit bulls, and equipment commonly used in dogfighting. About half the dogs were tethered to car axles with heavy chains that allowed the dogs to get close to each other, but not to have contact -- an arrangement typical for fighting dogs, according to the search warrant affidavit.

The indictment said dogfights were held at the Virginia property and dog owners brought animals from six states, including New York and Texas.

In a search warrant executed July 6, the government said the fights usually occurred late at night or in the early morning and would last several hours.

Before fights, participating dogs of the same sex would be weighed and bathed, according to the filings. Opposing dogs would be washed to remove any poison or narcotic placed on the dog's coat that could affect the other dog's performance.

Sometimes, dogs weren't fed to "make it more hungry for the other dog," it said.

Edited July 18, 2007 by Maxx

[Lowerdeck]

Kind of dumb of him being famous and a star QB and throw it all away for something simple like this.

[gunnar hendershow]

Wow, I just recently read he had no chance of being indicted. Now though it looks like he could be looking at the end of his football career and everything. Such a turn of events, shame he threw it all away.

[Toe]

Micheal Vick's play on the field has been questioned, his motivation questioned, and now this. I would not be surprised if Micheal Vick has an incredibly short leash this season. It is too bad the Falcons couldn't keep Schaub.

Whoops, nevermind. The Falcons have Chris Redman as his back-up - they are relying on Vick to carry the reigns at QB.

Edited July 18, 2007 by desiredtoe

[gunnar hendershow]

Chris Redman? Someone decided to SIGN him?

[Toe]

Chris Redman? Someone decided to SIGN him?

[GhostMachine]

Meh. He'll likely get off. After all, he has all that money to hire high priced attorneys who will use some world class bullshit or loopholes to get the jury to believe he's innocent.

[livid]

They also have Harrington!

But yeah, I didn't think he'd be indicted, but I guess he is. And if he guilty of what they're saying he is, then damn man, I was a fan of his and thought that he might be able to eventually put something together passing-wise, but it looks as if he might not be able to do so.

But if it is true, then I have no sympathy for him.

[Trey]

ESPN has a little Q&A thing up with Lester Munson. Here's the worst part of what I found.

If the dogs failed the test, the indictment charges, they were executed by hanging or drowning. In one case, with Vick present, the indictment says a dog was slammed to the ground until it was dead. In another incident, a dog was soaked with a hose and then electrocuted. Those aren't the sort of transgressions that lead to probation and community service. It's the kind of behavior that results in punishment, and the punishment will be jail time.

[Maxx]

ESPN posted some questions about the legal aspects of the case

A grand jury indicted Atlanta Falcons' quarterback Michael Vick on Tuesday, which at least partially answers one question that has lingered since the news first broke about an alleged dogfighting operation on property owned by Vick in Virginia: Was Vick involved? Obviously, we know now that investigators believe he was.

There are plenty of football-related issues still to be resolved about Vick's future with the Falcons and the NFL, but those might be the least of his concerns right now. Questions about his legal future abound at the moment. Here are some answers.

What do these federal charges mean for Michael Vick?

Vick is in real trouble. He is up against the might and majesty of the U.S. government with all of its agents, all of its investigative techniques, and all of its skilled prosecutors. If he has any doubts about the power and skill of the forces arrayed against him, he can call Scooter Libby, former chief of staff to Vice President Cheney, or he can call Lord Conrad Black, the disgraced media mogul now facing time in a federal penitentiary. If he still isn't convinced, he can call Jeff Skilling, the zillionaire Enron CEO who is now residing in a federal pen. All three of them hired brilliant (and expensive) lawyers. All three thought they could explain their way out from under federal charges. And all three were convicted. Vick can, and probably will, hire some of America's best defense lawyers, but they will face a serious battle.

Would Vick be sent to jail if he is convicted?

Yes. It's hard to imagine any other outcome. The charges are serious, and the evidence against Vick presented at trial will be nasty. The government's case includes evidence that Vick and his cohorts "tested" pit bulls for ferocity. If the dogs failed the test, the indictment charges, they were executed by hanging or drowning. In one case, with Vick present, the indictment says a dog was slammed to the ground until it was dead. In another incident, a dog was soaked with a hose and then electrocuted. Those aren't the sort of transgressions that lead to probation and community service. It's the kind of behavior that results in punishment, and the punishment will be jail time.

What is the next step for Vick?

Vick will now watch to see which of his three co-defendants will be the first to make a deal with federal prosecutors. Each of them will think seriously about turning on Vick and offering testimony against him in return for less time in jail. Vick obviously is the prime target of the government effort. Prosecutors and agents will be willing to talk with his co-defendants about a deal if they are willing to help prove the case against Vick. The government indictment discloses four witnesses who have already agreed to testify against him. If all three of his co-defendants join these four witnesses against Vick, he and his lawyers might suggest that he, too, should talk to the government about a deal that would minimize his time in jail.

Vick is charged with "conspiracy" and violations of the "Travel Act." What does that mean?

The conspiracy charge will make things extra difficult for Vick and his lawyers. Under federal laws, the conspiracy charge allows federal prosecutors to link Vick to things that occurred even if he was not present. If the prosecutors can connect the four defendants, then crimes committed by one of them can be used to add to the evidence against the others. It's a tricky legal procedure that prosecutors love and defense lawyers detest. The Travel Act is a device invented by Robert F. Kennedy when he was Attorney General in the early '60s. It was designed for use against organized crime and made it easier to prove cases against hoodlums. In the sports world, it was used most recently in the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics bribery scandal. Federal prosecutors charged the Utah organizers under the Travel Act and proved millions of dollars in bribes. Vick, however, can take some hope from the fact that U.S. District Judge David Sam found the organizers not guilty of violating the Travel Act, even though there was powerful evidence of bribery.

What was Vick's role in the dogfighting conspiracy described in the indictment?

According to the indictment, Vick was in the middle of everything from beginning to end. He purchased a vacant piece of property for $34,000, the indictment says. He then had sheds built for training dogs and staging fights and a fence erected to shield the operation from view. And finally, the indictment says, he had a two-story frame house with a basketball court put up as a residence for the people taking care of the dogs. If you believe the indictment, the Vick property had everything anyone could want in a dogfighting operation.

When would Vick's trial begin?

The federal courthouse in Richmond, Va., is the home of the nationally recognized "rocket docket." Cases move quickly in Richmond, more quickly than in any other courthouse in the federal system. Vick's lawyers will be looking for delays and for time to prepare a defense, but the trial likely would begin in a matter of four to six months.

Are the federal authorities in Richmond tough on crime?

Ask Ralph Sampson, the former NBA star. He fell behind in child support payments to seven children that he had with four women, the kind of thing that is ordinarily worked out in a settlement. But instead of a settlement, Sampson found himself charged with felonies in federal court. And then, very quickly, he found himself in jail for two months on a child support charge. Yes, they're tough on crime in Richmond, and they might be particularly tough on crimes involving the torture and killing of dogs.

Edited July 18, 2007 by Maxx

[Dan]

Good, what a wanker.

Give him 10 years, the prick.

[Riceman 4K]

Joey Heisman for MVP.

[Doc Funky]

RICHMOND, Va. -- NFL star Michael Vick was indicted by a federal grand jury Tuesday on charges of sponsoring a dogfighting operation so grisly the losers either died in the pit or sometimes were electrocuted, drowned, hanged or shot.

[jonnycomelately]

Not only is Michael Vick proverbially fucked but this whole fiasco leaves Arthur Blank's Falcons in a precarious situation as well. Vick is in the middle of the most lucrative deal in the NFL outside of Peyton Manning and has left the Falcons with little wiggle room to bring in impact players to surround him. With the prospect of him suiting up for trial rather than football games leaves Atlanta with a miserable QB rotation in Joey Harrington and Chris Redman. If it is certain that Vick will go to trial I would suggest Atlanta make a phone call to Daunte Culpepper. He is a shell of the QB he used to be but I still feel he is leaps and bounds better than Redman and on par if not better than Harrington though Harrington outplayed him in Miami last year.

To address Michael Vick as a person, it has been stated that this has been going on since 2001 so this isn't just a passing fancy for him. I haven't been able to watch any TV story on this crap so far because I can't bring myself to watching dogs get slaughtered. And it seems the sick fuck enjoys finding a new way to kill of his unfightable dogs each time, electrocution, hanging, drowning, and beating them on the ground like a wet towel. Throw the book at him if you are the feds and if you are the league. If you are going to take money and game time away from Tank Johnson, Chris Henry, and Pac-Man Jones for the crimes they committed then Michael Vick should not see the field of play for a while too...not getting the benefit of being the face of the Falcons.

[Mofoticon]

Vick, if all this stuff is true, then he better go to jail and throw away the key. There is also no way he plays this year in the NFL, regardless of what happens...Goddell will no doubt suspend him while this is hanging over his head.

[DMN in the House]

Vick = DONE.

Even if he's not convicted (unlikely, the Feds don't indict you if they don't have a rock solid case. Their conviction rate is in the high 90 percentile), he's still done from a PR standpoint.

[ROC]

All this does is make winning the NFC South division again a hell of a lot easier for the Saints.

In all seriousness, damn, man. Vick has went from being the NFL's posterboy to its worst enemy within a few scant years. He and his brother really are the most well-known fuckups in NFL/college history.

[Raven52]

I was reading the details of the dog-fighting organization and it's disgusting. If Vick isn't suspended this season, I hope he gets released. He really screwed up. He had a huge fanbase too...

Well, Vick's done and, in my opinion, so are the Falcons. For this year at least.

[IAceI]

Ugh.

I wish I never read this thread now. It's sick to think of that happening to dogs.

[GhostMachine]

Roger Goddell's reaction should make what he did to Pacman Jones look like a slap on the wrist. Seriously.