Vick's co-defendants to enter new plea agreements

[StanleySpadowski]

Peplaw, what's the Travel Act portion of the indictment?

Basically, what does it mean?

I'm not pep but the travel act was passed in the early 60s as a way that then AG Bobby Kennedy could go after the mob.

It basically made crossing state lines to commit an illegal act a federal offense.

 

[jazzcat22]

All it will take is a T.O. incident...and Vick will be 2nd page news. Well for at least as far as BSPN is concerned.....

 

[SMCowboy]

Really. This still amazes me. Jamal Lewis serves 4 months on drug charges and gets a similar suspension. Vick potentially serves a year and he gets a lifetime ban ????

The Feds are the ones with ALL the leverage right now. They have 3 co-defendants turn on him, plus the have the additional leverage of the superseding indictment as well. I would be shocked if Vicky ONLY got 1 year.

Someone with knowledge of the law, would or could the US prosecutors use the superseding indictment against Vick and basically tell him plead guilty to exactly what you are being charged with now, no plea deals, or on Friday you will have these additional charges against you as well, and tell him what those are?

As to why Vick could get the lifetime ban, and Jamal Lewis got off so easy.

#1.) Different Commishes. Under Goddell, Lewis would have NEVER gotten off the light.

#2.) Vick would be pleading guilty to gambling, and I do believe that I saw that there is a part in the current CBA, that plays are suspending for light if caught gambling.

 

[DallasCowpoke]

you are a wise one, and the WINNER!!!

I was wondering if anyone here was of the right age to remember him

I DEMAND A RECOUNT!!!


:

 

[peplaw06]

No. He's looking at much more than that because of the superseding indictment that will be filed against him. As I explained when this first story broke, Vick will be tagged with RICO violations. They had him on the underlying crimes, but they needed information about the organization--information that the cooperative witnesses can now provide. This is significant for two reasons: (1) it puts Vick's assets at jeopardy; and (2) it can be up 20 years per violation/activity of the organization in violation of the Act (and there are probably dozens). That is, every time he or anyone in the organization he ran did anything, its a violation that can be added. So they'll nail him on (i) breaking the state law; (ii) gambling on an act that is illegal in a state; (iii) racketeering; (iv) violation of the Travel Act; (v) some assorted federal "soft transfer" crimes like mail fraud, wire act; and (vi) RICO violations. Also, don't rule out potential income tax evasion issues.

If Vick goes to trial, he would assuredly lose. And if he does, I think he would be facing around 5 years and massive fines--and that is after getting lax sentencing.

If he pleas, I don't think the federal prosecutor would let him go with anything less than 1 year in the federal pen (and probably 2). There is no incentive to letting him go on probation or on a light sentence. These prosecutors have jobs to do, and like it or not, part of that job is the determent that comes from making a statement when Vick serves time for dog fighting.

That's all correct, but as of now the superseding indictment hasn't been filed yet. The "deadline" the prosecutors gave him is this Friday before they would do that. Doesn't mean that is a hard deadline if they think that a deal is closer to getting done, but as of now the RICO stuff hasn't been filed, if I read it correctly.

 

[peplaw06]

Personally, I can't see any owner or coach holding a press conference announcing the signing of Vick.

I can't see how you could 'sell it' to your fanbase - even if your team stinks.

Vick has been entertaining, but never a great quarterback. I can't see how signing him would be worth the negative P.R. that a team would inevitably get.

And THAT is likely THE reason why he won't play again if he doesn't. The economic pressure placed on the team/league by the public interest groups. I'd put my money on that trumping Goodell's desire to ban him for life.

 

[peplaw06]

The Feds are the ones with ALL the leverage right now. They have 3 co-defendants turn on him, plus the have the additional leverage of the superseding indictment as well. I would be shocked if Vicky ONLY got 1 year.

They have leverage on him, but that doesn't mean that they will refuse to deal. The government would, as already mentioned, be saving taxpayers money by dealing, and there's probably a large media contingent hounding them for details, that I'm sure they'd love to get rid of. Like I said earlier, if he's looking at 5 years on the counts now, I could see them dealing for 2-3 years.

The probation thing i mentioned earlier, I just brought up as a possibility. It's a highly unlikely possibility, because of the number of counts he could be and has been charged with. But it's definitely something I would ask for were I defending him. Other than this, he really doesn't have much of a criminal history. Even if they used the POM to say he has some criminal history, that's a relatively light history.

Someone with knowledge of the law, would or could the US prosecutors use the superseding indictment against Vick and basically tell him plead guilty to exactly what you are being charged with now, no plea deals, or on Friday you will have these additional charges against you as well, and tell him what those are?

Unlikely I would think, but it could happen. You could get some prosecutors trying to make a name for themselves. But generally speaking if a prosecutor can dispose of the case earlier than expected, some kind of deal will be made.

 

[Stash]

And THAT is likely THE reason why he won't play again if he doesn't. The economic pressure placed on the team/league by the public interest groups. I'd put my money on that trumping Goodell's desire to ban him for life.

Definitely.

Just like Goodell is hoping that a plea deal comes down before the season starts and he's forced to make some ruling to keep Vick away.

He'd rather have him plead guilty so he has a clear reason to suspend him, rather than risk a lawsuit if he tries to suspend him before he goes to trial.

I've said it before and I'll say it again.

Mike Vick has thrown his last pass in the NFL.

 

[03EBZ06]

Vick attorneys negotiating plea

Falcons QB would serve prison time if agreement reached

By D. ORLANDO LEDBETTER, BILL RANKIN
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 08/14/07

Michael Vick's attorneys are engaged in plea negotiations with federal prosecutors and the Falcons quarterback could reach an agreement before new dogfighting charges are handed down next week, according to a person with knowledge of the negotiations.

The negotiations follow news that two more of Vick's three co-defendants are scheduled to enter guilty pleas later this week as part of a deal with prosecutors.

Collins Spencer, a spokesman for Vick's lawyers, declined to comment Tuesday on any possible negotiations.

He added that Vick did not meet with his attorneys last night but said they will have a conference call with Vick this morning and may have an announcement this afternoon. Spencer did not indicate what the announcement would be.

On Monday Spencer said the legal team was "very surprised" by the pleas from Purnell Peace and Quanis Phillips and said they would not affect plans to move forward toward a Nov. 26 trial.

Vick's lead attorney, Billy Martin, could not be reached for comment.

If the announcement is that Vick has reached a plea agreement, the embattled star quarterback is expected to be sentenced to some time in prison, according to federal sentencing guidelines.

Vick's motivation to enter a guilty plea is likely fueled by the U.S. Attorney's Office announcement last month that it will seek a new "superseding" indictment against Vick by the end of August. With the cooperation of Vick's three co-defendants, there will likely be new, and more specific, allegations against Vick. The federal grand jury in Richmond is expected to hand up that indictment sometime early next week.

If Vick can reach an agreement by the end of this week, he would not have to answer to any additional charges.

This week, Vick learned that in the criminal justice system, friendship only goes so far.

On Monday, guilty plea hearings were scheduled for two of his co-defendants and long-time associates. Peace, 35, of Virginia Beach, has a plea hearing scheduled for Thursday in U.S. District Court in Richmond at 9 a.m., while Phillips, 28, of Atlanta, has a plea hearing set for Friday at the same time. The hearings showed up Monday on U.S. District Court Judge Henry E. Hudson's docket.

The third co-defendant, Tony Taylor, 34, of Hampton pleaded guilty July 30 and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in their case against Vick. Just days earlier, Taylor had joined Vick and the others in pleading not guilty.

Attorneys for both Peace and Phillips declined to comment Monday.

"There's no telling until the actual pleas, but this doesn't sound like good news for Michael Vick," said Kent Alexander, once the U.S. attorney in Atlanta and now Emory University's general counsel. "Usually, if people plead guilty early in a case they may be cooperating with the government. That's what it sounds like here."

A federal grand jury indicted the men last month on a single count of conspiracy to cross state lines to engage in illegal gambling; to sponsor a dog in an animal fighting venture; and to buy, transport and receive dogs for animal fighting.

They face up to five years in prison and $250,000 in fines, but defendants often receive more lenient punishment when they accept responsibility and enter guilty pleas.

A 13-page statement of facts Taylor signed with prosecutors last month says Vick, Peace and Phillips set up a business called "Bad Newz Kennels" in rural Surry County, Va., to raise and train pit bulls for dogfights.

It also says the men gambled on the fights in Virginia and several other states and that Vick almost exclusively funded the dogfighting operation and gambling monies.

At various times, Taylor, Peace and Phillips executed dogs they didn't think would fight well by shooting them, the statement says. The indictment issued earlier in July said Vick also executed dogs.

The plea deals for Taylor, Peace and Phillips emerged after federal prosecutors announced at their arraignment hearing last month that they would be seeking a superseding indictment, meaning they could name additional charges and defendants in the case. That indictment is expected to be announced before the end of this month.

Vick's jury trial is scheduled for Nov. 26, deep into the Falcons' schedule. The Falcons will have played 11 of their 16 regular-season games by then. Vick will remain free until the trial, but his availability to appear on field is unclear. The NFL barred Vick, with pay, from being with the team pending the outcome of its own investigation.

A call to Vick's agent, Joel Segal, was not returned Monday. The Falcons declined to comment on the latest developments in Vick's case.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is expected to make a decision on Vick's future in a few weeks. Goodell said he is waiting for a report from investigator Eric Holder before rendering a verdict, according to a league spokesman. No timetable has been set for Goodell's decision, NFL vice president of public relations Greg Aiello said.

Tailback Warrick Dunn, who spoke to Vick recently, said Falcons players are already of the mindset that they'll have to play without him.

"Mike is going to be missed, and he has been missed, but at the same time, you have to go on," he said.

Should Holder's report lead Goodell to determine Vick violated the NFL's player conduct policy, he could issue a suspension. Holder's report also could show that Vick did not violate the policy and that no league-ordered suspension or other discipline is warranted.

A high-ranking NFL team official said Goodell likely would meet with Vick or his legal representation before levying any suspension. Such a meeting has yet to take place.

Falcons owner Arthur Blank and president and general manager Rich McKay have said they had enough information to lead them to draw up papers to suspend Vick for four games — the maximum a team can suspend a player for disciplinary reasons. The league could suspend Vick for a year.

Blank and McKay also said there were discussions about cutting Vick.

Coach Bobby Petrino said Monday he had not been told of any developments from the NFL regarding a decision on Vick.

"I'm not aware of any recent updates on this situation," Petrino said.

"We've been proceeding as if — we have to — he's not going to be here, and we're doing the best we can at that."

http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/falcons/stories/2007/08/14/vick_0815.html

 

[cobra]

but as of now the RICO stuff hasn't been filed, if I read it correctly.

Well, yes and no.

Basically, RICO is just a statute that goes to organized activity.

RICO says if you do X, Y, or Z and you do it as organized entity, then in addition to the punishments for X, Y, and Z, you will also have the following added punishments. That's as rough and simplified as I can make it.

The initial indictment already indicted him on X, Y, and Z. It just didn't indict him for the organized entity part. That's where these turncoats come in. They will testify to the organization and organized activity of it all. Since they already have him on the underlying elements, the added inflating charge is a slam dunk with the testimony.

Now for more detail: Vick was indicted for gambling--which is illegal under Virginia law--on an activity violative of Virginia law--that is, dog fighting. Illegal gambling on an illegal activity is racketeering by statute. So he's already been indicted for racketeering. He was also indicted under the Travel Act, which is a second activity that can compromise a RICO claim. As he was indicted under two constituent parts of a RICO violation, the only left for the federal government to prove is that these things were being done as part of an organization: Bad Newz Kennels. If the turncoats testify about the organization and that Vick was the leader, then Vick is hosed under RICO. Under RICO, he faces punishment for each act anyone in the organization committed. One can imagine dozen instances of this.

He is hosed. They already nailed him on enough to put him away for the rest of his career. Now they are threatening even more daunting charges.

I'd be shocked if he pleas to less than a year by the end of this week. I expect it to be 2 years.

 

[DCBoysfan]

Its the smart move if knows he can't win this case

 

[Big Dakota]

If he ends up getting in the nighborhood of 12 months jail time, and he goes in real soon, 2007 is obviously history and then the question becomes who in their right mind would sign him in 08, fresh out of the slam for these heinous acts? Ya, NFL owners have shown a willingness to give criminals contracts, but Vick and his situation is a whole new can of worms i'm not so sure ANY owner wants to open. As others have said, how in the world do you sell Mike Vick in the future?

 

[HighTechDave]

If he ends up getting in the nighborhood of 12 months jail time, and he goes in real soon, 2007 is obviously history and then the question becomes who in their right mind would sign him in 08, fresh out of the slam for these heinous acts? Ya, NFL owners have shown a willingness to give criminals contracts, but Vick and his situation is a whole new can of worms i'm not so sure ANY owner wants to open. As others have said, how in the world do you sell Mike Vick in the future?

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