Two more individuals who pleaded not guilty last month along with Michael Vick to charges stemming from a dog fighting ring agreed to plea agreements with the government today.
At the federal courthouse here, Purnell A. Peace, 35, of Virginia Beach, and Quanis L. Phillips, 28, of Atlanta, pleaded guilty before United States District Judge Henry E. Hudson to one felony count related to a dog fighting ring the government says was run from a property Vick owned in Surry, Va.
On July 30, the other defendant in the case, Tony Taylor, pleaded guilty and agreed to testify against the others.
Vick is now the only defendant who has not pleaded guilty in the case. He faces three felony charges related to dog fighting and could face up to five years in prison and as much as a $250,000 fine if found guilty.
According to an individual with direct knowledge of the case, Vick had until 9 a.m. today to verbally accept the government's plea agreement. If he does not take the offer, the government will likely bring superseding charges against him which will subject him to more jail time.
The individual, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to discuss the case publicly, said Vick's lawyers had advised him to take the plea agreement.
"The government, by imposing a deadline for Friday on Vick and having Peace and Phillips plea the same day, has put the maximum pressure on Vick to accept the terms of the government's plea agreement," Christopher Bracey, a professor of law and African American Studies at Washington University in St. Louis, said in a telephone interview.
"The government is giving him every opportunity to avoid being the last person standing and facing the full brunt of the prosecution assisted by three of his former co-defendants."
Despite the absence of Vick's name on the schedule for Judge Hudson, Vick could still appear unannounced at the court today and enter his plea with the government.
Vick has been asked to stay away from Falcons training camp as the league investigates the charges against him. Last month, the N.F.L.'s commissioner, Roger Goodell, appointed Eric Holder, a former deputy attorney general, to look into the case and recommend a punishment.
| • | Two Plead Guilty in Dogfighting Case Tied to Vick
The New York Times, Friday, Aug. 17, 2007 Byline: Michael S. Schmidt |
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| Story also ran in 4 others: WIBW (KS), Newsday (NY), CBS News (NY) online and Fox News -- The O'Reilly Factor |
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