For more than two years I was one the most vocal members in the media who cried foul about Plaxico Burress getting two years for shooting himself in the leg.
You will never convince me that was a fair punishment, it was an even bigger miscarriage of justice than what happened with Michael Vick. Vick knew what he was doing was illegal and also knowingly lied to the Feds, that was a crime that needed to be punished even if the severity of that punishment was highly questionable.
Burress’ crime deserved no jail time and as we found out later most first offenders never set foot in jail, but the powers that be wanted to make an example out of Plaxico.
With that being said Plaxico made it a lot easier for them with his arrogance and indifference to the severity of the situation.
At first, Plaxico Burress didn’t know he shot himself in the leg. He told his wife he’d never go to prison. He never heard of New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg until the aftermath of the shooting. He cried in jail too many times to remember.
Burress suffered a wound in his upper right thigh, leaving a small scar that he reveals on camera. His wife, Tiffany, an attorney, told him about New York City’s tough gun laws, predicting he’d have to serve jail time. According to her, his response was “I’m not going to jail.”
Burress’ attorney, Benjamin Brafman, tells “Real Sports” that a bail agreement for $10,000, which would’ve allowed Burress to be released on his own recognizance, was undermined by Bloomberg. On the day of the agreement, the mayor delivered a harsh public rebuke of Burress, saying he deserved to be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
“About 20 minutes after the mayor held his press conference, the prosecutor called me and said they’re going to be asking for $250,000 bail,” Brafman said. “I said, ‘This is outrageous, we had an agreement.'”
Brafman said he relayed the mayor’s comments to Burress.
“You know what I said after that?” Burress asked interviewer Bryant Gumbel. “I said, ‘Who’s Mayor Bloomberg?’ Dead serious.”
Your celebrity can either hurt you or harm you depending on the situation. If you are Lindsey Lohan or Paris Hilton you can continue to skate on charges.
If you are an African-American star with a gun in a club who has a bit of shaky past your celebrity can hurt you even if you did catch the winning TD in one of the biggest Super Bowl upsets of all time.
I respect the judicial system even though it is broken. There is a reason Casey Anthony is walking around free in Ohio State gear and Plax spent those 20 months in jail.
Never think you are untouchable, because you aren’t.