Michael Vick gets 23 months

[DawnCt1]

I disagree, Dawnct....he doesn't deserve to have his career back and any team that would take him is not going to be one that I would root for (although I can think of a good fit for him )

He doesn't "deserve" to get his career back but what is the point of destroying the rest of his future after he has paid his debt to society? Should society deprive him of the right to pay for his crime and then go on to earn a living?
I am not sure that there is a team that would take him back but he has almost two years to rehabilitate his image and I would suggest that he start now.

 

[andromedaslove]

I certainly don't equate mass killings of dogs to mass murder of human beings. The murder of a single human is worse than all of Vick's dogs put together.........
it still bugs me that crimes against animals often draw more publicity and outrage than crimes against human beings.

Is it?! I mean seriously, he took innocent animals that had NEVER hurt anyone. Put them to use for his pleasure and money making, by making them fight and hurt each other. Then when they would get injured or didn't perform well, he electricuted them, drowned them, and beat them. I think the killing and torture of ANY defenseless creature (babies, children, animals) is pretty unforgiveable. It makes me sick to my stomach to hear people defend what he did, and use the excuse of "They're JUST animals".

Most crimes against people get attention, but the attention they get depends on the circumstances. The murder of a drug dealer is a blip on my local news, the guy that murders his wife get alot more, the murder of an innocent child is screamed from every news station around. That's just the way it is, and the way it should be. As a people we should be shocked when someone hurts innocent creatures, that includes the brutal killing and abuse of ANIMALS!

 

[Pop Daddy]

Im an animal lover but I fell bad for the guy, he lost everything, lost a lot more then another person with the same crime would get.

 

[sweetandsassyfl]

He doesn't "deserve" to get his career back but what is the point of destroying the rest of his future after he has paid his debt to society? Should society deprive him of the right to pay for his crime and then go on to earn a living?
I am not sure that there is a team that would take him back but he has almost two years to rehabilitate his image and I would suggest that he start now.

No, he should be able to have some sort of job but he shouldn't be able to make millions of dollars a year.....and I don't think anyone who has done what he has done to animals can rehabilitate his image. Besides, if you listen to his teammates he was never a real joy to have in the locker room or a real leader anyway.

 

[hiwaygal]

Im an animal lover but I fell bad for the guy, he lost everything, lost a lot more then another person with the same crime would get.

You think so?

His cohorts didn't get any less time, and Vick was the one who bankrolled the operation.

I think he had a lot more to lose, so it *seems* like he lost more. In reality, I think he'll end up in a much better place than any other person who leaves that federal prison before or after him.

 

[MzDiz]

He made his choice, I don't feel bad for him in the least. I don't know how anyone could feel sorry for him. He had the world on a platter and he blew it. Boo hoo.

 

[Pop Daddy]

You think so?

His cohorts didn't get any less time, and Vick was the one who bankrolled the operation.

I think he had a lot more to lose, so it *seems* like he lost more. In reality, I think he'll end up in a much better place than any other person who leaves that federal prison before or after him.

I was hearing on tv, the people often just get probation if this is there first offense, but I dont know for sure.

 

[andromedaslove]

Although I agree there are people who literally get away with the Murder of these dogs. The fact is that the penalties for these crimes keep getting more extreme for good reason.

[Recently, longer sentences have resulted in some dog fighting-related cases. In South Carolina, David Tant, breeder of fighting dogs, is serving a 30-year sentence, among the stiffest ever imposed for the crime.

"Fat Bill" Reynolds of Henry County, Virginia near Martinsville, publisher of American Gamedog Times, a dog fighting magazine with an Internet website, was convicted in 2001 of transmitting images of fighting dogs across state lines and sentenced to 30 months in prison.[19]

In June 2007, a circuit court judge in Richmond, Virginia imposed a four-year prison sentence and $20,000 in fines on 40-year old Stacey A. Miller, an Army veteran and convicted dog fighter. The Richmond Times-Dispatch reported that Miller was convicted in January by a jury of felony dogfighting, two counts of felony animal cruelty, a dozen counts of misdemeanor animal cruelty and two counts of possessing steroids. The jury recommended the four-year sentence and $20,000 in fines that the judge imposed. Miller also was ordered to pay Richmond Animal Care and Control $26,205.29 in restitution for the cost of caring for the 15 American pit bull terriers that were seized from him in February 2006, 12 of which had to be euthanized

So it seems like he still could have gotten a much tougher sentence than the one he did. I am not thrilled that he didn't get a tougher sentence, but I guess it's better than the 18 months they initially recommended. Thank goodness the judge was an animal lover.

 

[DrCavin]

There will be multiple teams interested in him when he gets out. Once he has served his sentence he should be allowed to make as much money as he can, we must now limit how much a con can make after his sentence - that is a very slippery slope...

 

[DawnCt1]

No, he should be able to have some sort of job but he shouldn't be able to make millions of dollars a year.....and I don't think anyone who has done what he has done to animals can rehabilitate his image. Besides, if you listen to his teammates he was never a real joy to have in the locker room or a real leader anyway.

Exactly what job would he be able to get? I didn't realize that we set limits on an ex con's income after they have paid their debt to society. I would much rather have him as a tax payer than a tax burden. His popularity in the locker room has nothing to do with him doing the job that his team hired him to do. If they don't want him, he can apply elsewhere. He is certainly tainted property right now. He needs to work hard to change his image starting yesterday.

 

[sweetandsassyfl]

Drcavin, I know we can't legally limit it....but I also think that if a team takes him, it shows that that team lacks in character.
Dawn, actually his popularity in the locker room does make a great deal of difference since leadership is an absolutely crucial characteristic of a good quarterback.

 

[andromedaslove]

And one more for good measure.....

Houston County, Ala., Judge Ed Jackson handed dogfighter Johnny Ray Lewis a 102-year prison sentence on Nov. 13, 2007. According to the Dothan Eagle, Lewis was first arrested in 2005, when authorities uncovered 17 injured and scarred dogs on his property.

Inside Lewis' home was a notebook that listed feeding routines, a diagram of a cat mill (which trains dogs to run by dangling a live animal in front of them), a list of dog prices and a list of dog names that included Gang Bang, Jack the Ripper, Atomic Bomb, Bad Credit and Mad Man.

In September 2007, a jury convicted Lewis of 17 felony counts of harboring dogs with the intent to fight them. Judge Jackson gave him six years in prison for each of the 17 dogs he abused. "It is a type of case that is sensitive to the public," Jackson noted during sentencing.

Looks like he still got off pretty easy if you ask me.

 

[DawnCt1]

Drcavin, I know we can't legally limit it....but I also think that if a team takes him, it shows that that team lacks in character.
Dawn, actually his popularity in the locker room does make a great deal of difference since leadership is an absolutely crucial characteristic of a good quarterback.

His popularity or lack of, didn't hurt his income. He should get the sentence he deserves and then be allowed to move on.

 

[andromedaslove]

His popularity or lack of, didn't hurt his income. He should get the sentence he deserves and then be allowed to move on.

I don't think it is really an option for him to return. He was involved with illegal gambling, which violates his contract with the NFL.

In disciplining Vick, commissioner Roger Goodell said Vick's admitted conduct was “not only illegal but also cruel and reprehensible” and regardless whether he personally placed bets, “your actions in funding the betting and your association with illegal gambling both violate the terms of your NFL player contract and expose you to corrupting influences in derogation of one of the most fundamental responsibilities of an NFL player.”

 

[DrCavin]

Drcavin, I know we can't legally limit it....but I also think that if a team takes him, it shows that that team lacks in character.
Dawn, actually his popularity in the locker room does make a great deal of difference since leadership is an absolutely crucial characteristic of a good quarterback.

Or does it show they can give a guy a second chance and allow him to be turn a negative into a positive

Obviously MV isn't the only person who liked to participate in dog fighting, if they have internet sites, magazines, etc there must be a whole lot of people doing this. I was surprised at how popular it really is, probably happening in/near you own community.

 

[sweetandsassyfl]

Yep, there's a reason he was indefinitely suspended. And Dawn, if you think he should get another chance then I hope your team gets him I know mine wouldn't touch him with a ten foot pole.

 

[andromedaslove]

Or does it show they can give a guy a second chance and allow him to be turn a negative into a positive

Obviously MV isn't the only person who liked to participate in dog fighting, if they have internet sites, magazines, etc there must be a whole lot of people doing this. I was surprised at how popular it really is, probably happening in/near you own community.

Crack Cocaine is really popular too!! There are a TON of people doing it, and happens around ALL of us on a regular basis. Even the Governor/Mayor of D.C. has done it. Does it mean that the drug dealers and those caught in posession shouldn't be held responsible and charged to the fullest extent of the law?

I don't care how popular dog fighting is, the people who do it are uneducated and incapable of compassion. If they can treat animals that way, well just take a look at the way they treat the people around them too.

 

[sweetandsassyfl]

Or does it show they can give a guy a second chance and allow him to be turn a negative into a positive

Obviously MV isn't the only person who liked to participate in dog fighting, if they have internet sites, magazines, etc there must be a whole lot of people doing this. I was surprised at how popular it really is, probably happening in/near you own community.

He's had more than one second chance in the past with other issues.

 

[DrCavin]

Yep, there's a reason he was indefinitely suspended. And Dawn, if you think he should get another chance then I hope your team gets him I know mine wouldn't touch him with a ten foot pole.

Your an NFL team owner?

 

[sweetandsassyfl]

No, but I consider the team I root for to be "my team" and I know that their coach would never take a person like Michael Vick who has not even shown any remorse onto the team.