dog fighting

[jgredline]

As a person who loves Sports and Loves animals very much, this story made my stomach churn...This story really vexes me....

discuss

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.

"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.

http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/7033242

 

[sisterchristian]

That is just down right WRONG!!! :smt009

 

[hisworkmanship]

I live in NYC and alot of the inner city kids do this with their dogs. It's a macho thing. I had a Rottweiler for 14 years and would have never put her through that type of torture. Those who do, care not about God's creation but about making a buck and trying to make a name for themselves.

 

[ThreeInOne]

If any subject gets me going it's abuse of animals, children and the elderly. Well, anyone actually but I get more upset when it's over someone who can't defend themselves.
I just saw a clip of this on some news show during dinner and well...I lost my appetite! :smt013

 

[Lewis]

But first' they have to see if Vick had anything to do with it. The USA makes me sick with' convicting you before you have been found guilty. And a lot of times when you get convicted in this country' you are not guilty.

Falcons' Vick Pleads Not Guilty
By HANK KURZ Jr.,AP
Posted: 2007-07-26 17:10:57
Filed Under: Sports News
RICHMOND, Va. (July 26) - Michael Vick pleaded not guilty Thursday to federal dogfighting charges and was released without bond until a Nov. 26 trial. The Atlanta Falcons quarterback then apologized to his mother and asked that judgment be withheld.

Vick was jeered by a crowd as he went into court. He and three others entered their pleas in U.S. District Court to conspiracy charges involving competitive dogfighting, procuring and training pit bulls for fighting, and conducting the enterprise across state lines. Federal prosecutors say the operation - known as Bad Newz Kennels - was run on Vick's property in Surry County.

"I take these charges very seriously and look forward to clearing my good name," Vick said in a statement read outside court by Billy Martin, his lawyer.

I respectfully ask all of you to hold your judgment until all of the facts are shown. Above all, I would like to say to my mom I'm sorry for what she has had to go through in this most trying of times. It has caused pain to my family and I apologize to my family."

Among the conditions set for all the defendants is that they surrender their passports, that they not travel outside their immediate area without court approval, and that they do not sell or possess any dog. In addition, Vick was ordered to surrender any animal breeder or kennel license.

The co-defendants made their pleas before U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson.

"He asserted in a loud and clear voice that he is not guilty of these allegations," Martin said.

"This is going to be a hard-fought trial."

Vick arrived at the courthouse at 3 p.m. in a black sport utility vehicle and was booed by a crowd of hundreds as he emerged. Wearing a dark suit and blue shirt, the quarterback looked straight ahead as he walked up the ramp to the courthouse. He did not respond to reporters.

The allegations detailed in a graphic, 18-page indictment sparked protests by animal rights groups at the headquarters of the NFL and the Falcons. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has barred Vick from training camp while the league investigates.

Falcons owner Arthur Blank said the team wanted to suspend Vick for four games, the maximum penalty a team can assess a player, but the NFL asked him to wait. Instead, Blank has told the player to concentrate on his legal problems, not football.

Thursday, the Falcons opened their first camp under coach Bobby Petrino.

The case began April 25 when investigators conducting a drug search at the home found 66 dogs, including 55 pit bulls, and equipment typically used in dogfighting. They included a "rape stand" that holds aggressive dogs in place for mating and a "breakstick" used to pry open a dog's mouth.

Vick contended he knew nothing about a dogfighting operation at the home, where one of his cousins lived, and said he rarely visited. He has since declined comment, citing his lawyer's advice.

Attorney Lawrence Woodward, who has also represented Allen Iverson and Vick's younger brother, Marcus, has not returned several phone messages.

Charged along with Vick are Purnell A. Peace, 35, of Virginia Beach; Quanis L. Phillips, 28, of Atlanta; and Tony Taylor, 34, of Hampton. They all face up to six years in prison, $350,000 in fines and restitution if convicted.

Animal rights organizations have seized on the case as an opportunity to raise awareness of the largely underground and always gruesome world of dogfighting, where two dogs are trained to fight to the death - sometimes for hours - until the end.

Early Thursday, activists, supporters of the athlete and the media gathered outside the federal courthouse. Some members of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals dressed in dog costumes and carried signs, including one with the image of a battered pit bull and the words "Dogfighting Victim." Some people brought their dogs.

According to the indictment filed July 17, dogs not killed in the fighting pit were often shot, hanged, drowned or, in one case, slammed to the ground. The document says Vick was consulted before one losing dog was wet down and electrocuted.

It alleges that the dogfighting operation began in 2001, not long after Vick parlayed a dazzling two-year run as the quarterback at Virginia Tech into being the first overall selection in the NFL draft. His first contract was for $62 million. In 2004, he signed a 10-year, $130 million deal, then the richest in league history.

The indictment says the fights offered purses as high as $26,000, and that Vick once paid $23,000 to the owner of two pit bulls that had beaten Bad Newz Kennels dogs. That owner is one of four cooperating witnesses cited in the document.

Associated Press Writers Dionne Walker, Larry O'Dell and Michael Felberbaum contributed to this report.

 

[Heavenbound983]

Granted...innocent until proven guilty.

However, that very article contains a lot of possible proof. And Vick is at least partially responsible for what goes on on his own property. So yes, let's see how it pans out in court...but I'm not holding my breath for very long.

 

[Lewis]

Her is another bad' and I mean bad case' about what goes wrong with the American justice system.

Wrongfully Jailed Men to Get $101 Million
By DENISE LAVOIE,AP
Posted: 2007-07-27 07:03:42
Filed Under: Crime News, Law, Nation
BOSTON (July 26) - In a stinging rebuke of the FBI, a federal judge ordered the government to pay a record judgment of $101.7 million because agents withheld evidence that would have kept four men from spending decades in prison for a mob murder they did not commit.

Judge Nancy Gertner told a packed courtroom Thursday that agents were trying to protect informants when they encouraged a witness to lie, then withheld evidence they knew could prove the four men were not involved in the 1965 murder of Edward "Teddy" Deegan, a small-time thug shot in an alley.

Gertner said Boston FBI agents knew mob hitman Joseph "The Animal" Barboza lied when he named Joseph Salvati, Peter Limone, Henry Tameleo and Louis Greco as Deegan's killers. She said the FBI considered the four "collateral damage" in its war against the Mafia, the bureau's top priority in the 1960s.

Tameleo and Greco died behind bars, and Salvati and Limone spent three decades in prison before they were exonerated in 2001. Salvati, Limone and the families of the other men sued the federal government for malicious prosecution.

"Do I want the money? Yes, I want my children, my grandchildren to have things I didn't have, but nothing can compensate for what they've done," said Salvati, 75.

"It's been a long time coming," said Limone, 73. "What I've been through - I hope it never happens to anyone else."

The case is only the latest to highlight the cozy relationship Boston mobsters enjoyed with FBI agents for decades. Former Boston agent John Connolly was sentenced in 2002 to 10 years in prison for his role in protecting two organized crime kingpins, including one who remains a fugitive.

Gertner said FBI agents Dennis Condon and H. Paul Rico not only withheld evidence of Barboza's lie, but told state prosecutors who were handling the Deegan murder investigation that they had checked out Barboza's story and it was true.

"The FBI's misconduct was clearly the sole cause of this conviction," the judge said.

The government had argued federal authorities had no duty to share information with state officials who prosecuted the men. Federal authorities cannot be held responsible for the results of a state prosecution, a Justice Department lawyer said.

Gertner rejected that argument.

"The government's position is, in a word, absurd," she said.

A Boston FBI spokeswoman referred calls to the Department of Justice. Charles Miller, a spokesman for the Justice Department, said officials would have no immediate comment.

Peter Neufeld, co-founder of the Innocence Project, a New York-based legal advocacy group that specializes in overturning wrongful convictions, said the $101.75 million award is the largest ever in a wrongful-conviction case.

Gertner awarded $26 million to Limone, $29 million to Salvati, $13 million to Tameleo's estate and $28 million to Greco's estate. The wives of Limone and Salvati and the estate of Tameleo's deceased wife each received slightly more than $1 million. The men's 10 children were each awarded $250,000.

Limone and Salvati stared straight ahead as the judge announced her ruling, but a gasp was heard from the area where their friends and family were sitting when Gertner said how much the government would be forced to pay.

At the time of Deegan's slaying, Tameleo and Limone were reputed leaders of the New England mob, while Greco and Salvati had minor criminal records.

Deegan's murder had gone unsolved until the FBI recruited Barboza to testify against several organized crime figures. Barboza wanted to protect a fellow FBI informant, Vincent "Jimmy" Flemmi, who was involved in the Deegan slaying, and agreed to testify for state prosecutors in the case, plaintiff's lawyers said.

Tameleo died in prison in 1985 after serving 18 years. Greco died in prison in 1995 after serving 28 years.

Salvati was sentenced to life in prison as an accessory to murder. He was released from prison when his sentence was commuted in 1997, after serving a little more than 29 years. Limone served 33 years in prison before being freed in 2001.

Salvati and Limone were exonerated in 2001 after FBI memos dating back to the Deegan case surfaced during probes into the Boston FBI's relationship with gangsters and FBI informants Stephen "The Rifleman" Flemmi, Vincent's brother, and James "Whitey" Bulger, who has been on the FBI's "10 Most Wanted" list for years.

Republican Rep. Dan Burton of Indiana, who chaired the House Government Reform Committee when it conducted an investigation of the FBI and its use of criminal informants, said he was gratified by the judge's ruling.

"This was one of the biggest injustices that I have ever seen," Burton said.

One of the agents blamed in the case, Rico, was arrested in 2003 on murder and conspiracy charges in the 1981 killing of a Tulsa, Oklahoma, businessman. Rico died in state custody in 2004 while awaiting trial.

Attorneys for Condon did not immediately return phone messages seeking comment Thursday.

During testimony before Burton's committee in 2001, Rico denied he and his partner helped frame an innocent man for Deegan's death, but acknowledged that Salvati wrongly spent 30 years in prison for the crime.

Rico was unrepentant when asked how he felt about Salvati's wrongful imprisonment.

"What do you want, tears?" he said.
Associated Press writer Nancy Rabinowitz contributed to this report.

 

[Guest]

Vick has the right to defend himself and his actions. Vick should be presummed innocent until proven guilty.

However, Vick should (and thankfully the NFL has) also not be allowed to practice with the Falcons until this get's cleared up - either innocent or guilty.

I believe this illustrates for us, as believers, the importance to avoid the appearance of evil.

Since this proposed illegal activity happened on Vick's property - he has a responsbility to know what it happening on his property as well as with the kennel that he party owns.