Why Did Plaxico Burress Glock Himself?
I love sports, and I love football. That’s why it angers me when a famous sports figure does something so stupid that it beggars description. Case in point: Plaxico Burress, part of the Super Bowl champions New York Giants football team, shot himself in the leg at a nightclub over the weekend and, along with the hospital, is now facing all kinds of legal ramifications:
Burress arrived at the Latin Quarter nightclub in Manhattan at 1:20 a.m. Saturday morning, with four others, including two teammates.
The criminal complaint, released by prosecutors Monday, said that an onlooker then saw Burress near the V.I.P. area of the club holding a drink in his left hand and fidgeting his right hand in the area of the waistline of his pants. The witness then heard a single “pop” sound before hearing Burress say, “Take me to the hospital.”
Burress was on the ground, with his legs shaking, when a bloody gun — a .40-caliber Glock pistol — fell out of his pant leg and onto the floor, the onlooker said. Investigators believe that [Giants linebacker Antonio] Pierce was standing next to Burress when the gun went off. The bullet, which broke through the skin of Burress’s right thigh and pierced muscle tissue, traveled through the leg before lodging itself somewhere in the club.
Burress left the club by 1:50 a.m., the police said, and arrived at the hospital at 2:04 a.m., according to surveillance cameras at the hospital.
The gun, with the magazine gone and the chamber cleared, was then placed in the glove compartment of Pierce’s S.U.V., said Browne, the police spokesman.
Pierce, who was interviewed by N.F.L. security at the Giants’ team hotel Saturday, is now under investigation for “his role, regarding the gun and the case itself,” Browne said. [...]
Burress checked into Weill Cornell Medical Center at 2:20 a.m., where he was treated and released at 1 p.m. Saturday. The police arrived an hour and a half later, tipped off, they say, by news reports, not the hospital. A hospital administrator there was “not forthright with the police,” Browne said.
After not talking to the police for a couple of days, Plaxico finally turned himself into police on Monday morning, and it is emerging that he faces a litany of charges, none of which involve football:
In what prosecutors called “a strong case,” Burress faces a mandatory sentence of 3 ½ years in state prison, with a maximum of 15 years, on each count of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon. Benjamin Brafman, Burress’s lawyer, said Burress planned to plead not guilty to both counts.
Burress, who caught the winning touchdown in the Giants’ Super Bowl victory in February, surrendered to the police Monday, showing up at the 17th Precinct station house at 8 a.m., with no limp.
Later Monday, having declined to speak with the police for two days about the incident, Burress posed for mug shots and was electronically fingerprinted.
“He is standing tall,” Brafman said. “He’s a mature adult handling this very well, I think, under the circumstances. He has asked me to tell all the fans who have written and called, and his teammates, that he very much appreciates their expressions of concern.”
Oh, sure. Because mature human beings always shoot themselves in the leg while carrying an illegal handgun inside a crowded nightclub in the wee hours of the morning. I know I try to work that in at least once a year, mainly during the busy holiday season.
So what does this mean to his future with the Giants?
Burress’s immediate future with the Giants is uncertain. Under the league’s personal-conduct policy, violations of local gun laws can result in a player’s suspension. He also may be facing other weapons charges. It was unclear Monday whether charges would be filed against Burress in New Jersey, where he lives and where the gun was recovered from his home.
I think that perhaps Eli Manning should think about working with someone else for those long passes.
You know, I’ve made the argument before that while I love sports, and I do believe that they fill a place in our world, and that there are obviously people with great talent who participate in them, these people are not doctors or teachers or scientists. They are not curing cancer or finding a new way to create energy or teaching disabled children. They’re sports figures, and paying them bazillions of dollars just to catch a ball is overly ridiculous. And let’s face it…entirely too often, when you give someone instant fame and fortune and surround them with yes-men and hangers-on, whether it be in the sports world or entertainment world or any other sort of career, it goes totally to their heads and stupid decisions are the result. Yes, I know that poor people make stupid decisions too, but it’s easier for a rich and famous person to indulge their stupidity, and for others to overlook it or cover it up, than it is for Joe Schmoe The Ragpicker up the road.
I mean, when he signed with the Giants, he inked a six-year, $25M deal. He has a wife and son to take care of. He spent a good deal of the preseason pouting and moping around because he felt like he wasn’t being paid enough. He’s had the police called to his house for domestic disturbances and had restraining orders issued against him. He doesn’t have to act like a thug, yet continues to. What did his thug actions gain him? It truly makes one realize that all the money and talent in the world doesn’t guarantee happiness or smarts.
I’m not saying there aren’t good, decent people in sports that we and our kids can look up to. I’m just saying, choose them wisely.
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Hah, looks like he’s admitted the real reason:
After taking counsel with his lawyer, Burress finally surrendered to the police on Monday, with an explanation they were not expecting: Burress was aiming at a leprechaun who had been getting fresh with his wife!
http://www.weeklyworldnews.com/headlines/burress-blames-leprechaun-for-injury/
Comment by shinyshiny — December 2, 2008 @ 12:24 pm
Two words: SAFETY.
Comment by Moses — December 2, 2008 @ 4:30 pm
HAHAHAHA
Just another case of rapper Glock Cock.
Failed to use a holster.
Played with gun when play not required.
Manipulated gun while pointed in unsafe direction.
Not the first and won’t be the last gangster to Glock his Cock.
Comment by failure — December 24, 2008 @ 6:44 pm