Vick enters guilty plea, gets suspended sentence

Sussex, Va. — Michael Vick is a step closer to concluding his legal troubles, a move that could enable him to leave federal prison early. It could also mean a chance for the imprisoned Falcons quarterback to return to the NFL.

Vick pleaded guilty to a state dogfighting charge Tuesday in a Virginia courtroom. Under a plea agreement, the Falcons quarterback received a three-year suspended prison term and a $2,500 fine on a charge of attending, sponsoring and participating in dog fights. A charge of cruelty to animals with prejudice was dismissed. He also received four years’ probation. The fine will be suspended if Vick pays court costs and keeps the terms of the probation. The charges against Vick carried a maximum sentence of 10 years.

After accepting the plea, Surry County Circuit Court Judge Samuel E. Campbell allowed Vick to speak. A stoic Vick, dressed in a gray suit, paused and then said: “I would like to apologize to the court, my family and to the kids that I let down as a role model. I’m very remorseful for my actions.”

Vick’s mother, Brenda Boddie, brother, Marcus Vick and fiancée, Kijafa Frink entered the courtroom together and sat in the front row of the gallery with several other family members.

Following the 20-minute hearing, Vick turned to his daughter and winked. Before being taken out of the courtroom, he paused and appeared to want to hug his mother but was not allowed.

Vick’s long-time attorney said the family, which had no comment leaving the courtroom, did get to see him.

“Michael was in good spirits,” said Lawrence H. Woodward, of Virginia. “He misses his family.”

Vick is currently serving a 23-month federal sentence on felony charges related to dogfighting. He is suspended indefinitely by the NFL and remains in a contract dispute with the Falcons while on the suspended roster.

Billy Martin, Vick’s Washington, D.C.-based attorney, repeatedly described Vick’s time in jail as “hell” following the hearing.

“If you ask Michael what does he want, he wants to come home,” Martin said. “If you’ve ever been to or spent a moment inside a federal penitentiary, it’s hell. Michael has been punished. He’s accepted that punishment.”

Vick filed for bankruptcy earlier this year. Recent court documents indicate that he spent over $17 million in a two-year period from July 2006 to July 2008.

Vick arrived at the Sussex County Courthouse via police escort shortly after 6:30 a.m. for his 9 a.m. hearing. He was shackled at the wrists and ankles, but they were removed before the hearing.

Shortly afterward, five satellite TV trucks, a bank of 10 camera stands and eight protestors from the People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) lined the front walk into the courthouse.

Last Thursday, Vick was moved from prison in Leavenworth, Kan., and held in Hopewell Regional Jail.

Vick is scheduled to be released from federal prison July 20, 2009. With his state case completed, he is eligible to participate in the Federal Bureau of Prisons re-entry program. The program could include an early release and a stay at a halfway house for up to six months.

Upon release from prison, Vick plans to apply for re-instatement to the NFL. The NFL would not comment on Tuesday’s proceedings, according to spokesman Greg Aiello. Falcons owner Arthur Blank is on record as saying Vick won’t play for the team again.

The Falcons will have the option of releasing him and taking a major salary-cap hit. They also could attempt to trade Vick, like Dallas did with embattled Tennessee cornerback Adam “Pacman” Jones last season.

“Mike is working out and staying in great shape,” said Joel Segal, Vick’s agent. “We talked yesterday, and he told me he was about 208 [pounds] and he looked great.”

There will be controversy surrounding any team that acquires Vick.

“I hope they’re prepared to face the dog lovers of America,” Kansas City president and general manager Carl Peterson said. “There are going to be a lot of problems. People love their pets, and particularly dogs. There will be protests, people expressing their thoughts — even though he’s served his time.”

PETA is contemplating not protesting Vick when, or if, he returns to the NFL.

“PETA’s position on his future in the NFL and our reaction to him when he gets out of jail will depend on whether if he chooses to become a part of the solution to this problem,” PETA assistant director Dan Shannon said. “We’d love to see him spend as much time and energy fighting against dogfighting as he put into participating in it.”

The dismissal of the cruelty charges was inconsistent with the federal case that resulted in a nearly two-year sentence.

“That was simply a part of the plea agreement,” Surry County prosecutor Gerald Poindexter said. “I feel that what I did today was approved by more than a majority of the people of Surry County.”

Poindexter didn’t believe the state was too lenient in its prosecution. He leveled charges of overzealous prosecution against the federal government and the United States attorneys office. He said Vick’s celebrity led to the federal case.

“How often have you run into the United States attorney’s office charging people for conspiring to commit a misdemeanor,” Poindexter said. “That’s what was done in this case. What they allegedly did and what they pled guilty to, the substance of it was that up to May 7, 2007, in federal law it was a misdemeanor. But to enhance the seriousness of it, these [four] guys were charged with conspiracy to commit a misdemeanor. That’s kind of unusual.”

Poindexter, an African-American, saw the case being twinged with racism.

“I think quite honestly, you combine Michael Vick, [Surry County Sheriff] Harold Brown and Gerald Poindexter and a lot of the criticism was racist,” Poindexter said. “If you want to read the letters in my office you would come to the same conclusion.”

— The Associated Press contributed to this article.