Vick surrenders, starts serving his time early

Sentencing scheduled in three weeks

Associated Press

November 20, 2007

RICHMOND, Va. - Michael Vick got a head start on a possible long prison stretch yesterday, surrendering three weeks before he was to be sentenced for his involvement in a dogfighting ring.

The suspended Atlanta Falcons quarterback surrendered to U.S. marshals in what his lawyer said was another step in his public repentance.

"From the beginning, Mr. Vick has accepted responsibility for his actions, and his self-surrender further demonstrates that acceptance," attorney Billy Martin said in a statement.

Vick pleaded guilty in August to a federal dogfighting-conspiracy charge after his three co-defendants pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate with authorities.

He is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 10 but worked out a deal "to voluntarily enter custody prior to his sentencing hearing," according to a court document.

The federal sentencing guidelines call for a sentence of a year to 18 months, but Vick, who has admitted bankrolling Bad Newz Kennels, could get up to five years in prison.

In an e-mail sent to the Associated Press, the U.S. attorney's office confirmed Vick's surrender but declined to comment further.

Whether the unexpected move will lighten Vick's sentence is unclear, said Ronald Bacigal, a University of Richmond law professor who specializes in criminal law and criminal procedure.

"I don't think there's any benefits except getting [the sentence] started," Bacigal said.

Vick's troubles began in April when authorities conducting a drug investigation of a cousin of Vick's seized dozens of dogs, most of them pit bulls, from a Surry County property, along with equipment linked to dogfighting.

It was there that the dogfighting enterprise Bad Newz Kennels had operated since 2001 on 15 acres owned by Vick.

Suspended indefinitely by the NFL without pay, Vick apologized before cameras in late August but attracted more negative attention when he tested positive for marijuana in September, a violation of U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson's order that Vick stay off drugs in exchange for being allowed to remain free.

Vick is being held at Northern Neck Regional Jail in Warsaw until his sentencing, U.S. marshals told the Associated Press. The mixed-gender jail houses about 450 inmates.