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Attorney, Benjamin Brafman said the conviction and imprisonment of Plaxico Burress was a "tragic day for a decent man." After leaving court, Brafman lamented that Burress made a mistake but did not deserve such a strict sentence. "You can violate the law... and not be a criminal."
huh?
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Wow, isn't that man's attitude toward sin?
Posted by: Bill Kennon | September 24, 2009 at 12:29 PM
The thing that really bothers me is how we sometimes go about teaching lessons. Is it right to use Plax's celebrity status just to send a message to whomever it is supposed to be sent to? If this was Joe from around the block, what type of lesson and message would have been sent?
Posted by: Joshua Symonette | September 24, 2009 at 12:47 PM
@Joshua - I personally think the line is great for communicating man's human condition, which is what Joe from around the block may need to hear. And he might not connect the dots any other way.
--Terrace Crawford
www.terracecrawford.com
www.twitter.com/terracecrawford
Posted by: Terrace Crawford | September 24, 2009 at 03:36 PM
Ben, I know you're blog (or this post) isn't intended for debating the justice system, but I think this observation deserves to be heard by as big an audience as possible.
Plaxico Burress brings the gun to the club without a permit, yes that is wrong. But the gun going off hurt him alone and he gets a 2 year sentence.
Another football player, Donte' Stallworth, gets drunk, drives a car and kills a man. He gets 30 days in jail.
Something doesn't seem right.
Posted by: Brenton Balvin | September 24, 2009 at 04:18 PM
i think we're used to looking at justice as harsh vs. more harsh.
but you could... and i mean could... look at this as a case of merciful vs more merciful
Posted by: Ben Arment | September 24, 2009 at 06:10 PM
I was a year ahead of Plax in Jr. High and High school and growing up he was just your normal kid who was very talented in athletics and a decent student. I agree with Brenton's comment.
Posted by: Amanda Jaynes | September 25, 2009 at 12:20 PM
Plaxico Burress actually got less of a sentence than 'joe from around the block' would have, mainly due to plea bargaining. In NYC, it is a FELONY to conceal a firearm without a permit (which is nigh impossible to get in NYC)with a MANDATORY sentence of 2 years. Of course, they let him go for his other felony, carrying a firearm in a business that serves alcohol. They completely ignored that he discharged his firearm in the club as well, or else he'd have a 3 to 5 year sentence.
NYC has some of the strictest gun laws in the country, and Plaxico knew that. He made a bad decision, then he backed it up with a lame excuse. But the fact is, he committed three felonies and only got charged on ONE, so he should be thankful. Any normal citizen in NYC who did this would get a 5 to 10 year sentence total, plus it would kick off another round of Mayor Bloomberg playing 'let's waste taxpayer money trying to ban guns from citizens in NYC'.
Posted by: Austin_Lewis | September 27, 2009 at 01:40 AM