imported post
He is going to be arrested and could do 3 yrs in jail for not having a "permit"
Police are still gathering information regarding the incident that left Giants Pro Bowl wide receiver Plaxico Burress with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. However, some details are coming to light.
The latest: New York City law enforcement sources have told FOX Sports that they received word Sunday morning that Burress has agreed to turn himself in with attorneys by Monday. The sources said the police searched areas of New York and New Jersey yesterday looking to locate Burress to question him regarding the shooting at Latin Quarters nightclub early Saturday morning.
The Associated Press reported Sunday that the Giants' receiver will be charged with criminal possession of a weapon, according to Burress' agent Benjamin Brafman, who added that Burress will enter a "not guilty" plea.
Police had gone to his house, the hospital and staked out his car, which was left at the club as late as Saturday night, hoping to question Burress and check out the gun that was used in the shooting. When police went to Burress' house yesterday and attempted to locate him, his wife, through an intercom, insisted he was not home and that she was not with the star wide receiver when the incident took place.
Reports also indicate that Burress had a Florida gun permit but that the permit expired in May. New York law prohibits the possession of a concealed weapon within New York even if one is licensed in an outside state. Mayor Michael Bloomberg in 2006 led the way to stiffen gun laws in New York City making it a mandatory 3½-year sentence for being busted for illegal possession of a firearm within the city.
Sunday Burress' lawyer told the Associated Press that he has been advised the Giants' receiver will be charged with criminal possession of a weapon. According to the New York Post NYPD detectives traveled to Burress' home in Totowa, NJ Sunday evening to seize the handgun and transfer back to the 17th Precinct stationhouse on the East Side, where Burress is to turn himself in Monday.
Burress is not the only Giant who has been implicated by this unfortunate event. Team captain Antonio Pierce brought Burress to the hospital and tried to aid his injured teammate. There have been reports linking Pierce to possible obstruction of justice charges, but police sources contend that Pierce has been extremely cooperative and helpful and have even helped authorities with information to locate the gun. However, police still do not have the gun and may be waiting for Burress to turn it in.
NYPD also went to the club yesterday to view video surveillance video to make sure the story they were getting is the same story that actually unfolded.
Another angle that could arise, but at this point seems unlikely, is that while Burress could face gun charges there is also the possibility of a reckless endangerment charge, which carries a possible seven-year sentence. Luckily for Burress, sources say that at this point they likely won't pursue this route.
In addition to legal ramifications, the NFL has also acted swiftly in trying to gather information.
FOX Sports has also learned that the league office dispatched a senior security official to the Giants team hotel in Washington, D.C. last night to interview Pierce and other Giants players, plus other members of the Giants training staff and organization among others.
Even if Burress' charges are not as stiff as originally reported, the league can still discipline him independently of the law. Commissioner Roger Goodell has been very strict in dealing with off-field issues, and considering this is right in his own backyard he is forced to read about it and hear it every day.
The NFL also has a guns and weapons policy and states: "If you violate this policy on guns and other weapons, you are subject to discipline, including suspension from playing. And if you violate a public law covering weapons — for example, possession of an unlicensed firearm — you are not only to discipline, including suspension from playing, but also subject to criminal prosecution."
As for the Giants, sources say their initial reaction is to go after some of Burress' money in light of the fact that he was injured in a non-football injury incident.
Burress has had a history of disciplinary problems with the Giants, especially this year, that has seen him suspended one game, benched another and fined several other times. The league also looked into domestic disturbance questions that surrounded him in the past.
While the entire affair is unfortunate and sad, Burress got lucky that he only suffered a superficial wound. The bullet did not hit a bone nor an artery, which could have obviously turned this situation from sad to tragic.
