Burress Sentenced to 2 Years

Former Super Bowl hero Plaxico Burress was sentenced to two years in prison Tuesday morning for violating New York’s gun laws and was immediately taken into custody following the sentencing. He has said he hopes to return to football when he’s freed.

Burress was accompanied by his wife, son and father to the hearing this morning. He pleaded guilty to a weapons charge last month stemming from an incident in which he suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound at a Manhattan nightclub in November.

It was expected for Burress to serve 20 months of the sentance, which he agreed to last month after pleading guilty, followed by 2 years of probation.

Defense lawyer Benjamin Brafman has said Burress was thinking of his family in taking the plea, but the attorney questioned the recommended prison sentence.

The case went to a grand jury after months of negotiations between prosecutors and Brafman broke down, apparently because Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau insisted that the former New York Giants wide receiver serve at least two years in prison.

On July 29, Burress took the rare and risky step of testifying before the grand jury, hoping to convince the panel that the gun was not used in the commission of a crime and that he was the lone victim. But days later, Burress was indicted on two counts of criminal possession of a weapon and one count of reckless endangerment. He faced a minimum sentence of 3½ years if convicted at trial.

On Aug. 20, the day he was to be arraigned, Burress agreed to a plea deal and pleaded guilty to attempted weapons possession in the second degree.

Hours after Burress’ court appearance, the NFL announced that commissioner Roger Goodell had suspended the receiver and said Burress is ineligible to sign with any team until he completes his prison term. After that, Burress may sign with an NFL team without further review.

Burress and former teammate Antonio Pierce were at the Latin Quarter nightclub in Manhattan in late November 2008 when a gun tucked into Burress’ waistband slipped down his leg and fired, shooting him in the right thigh.

The bullet narrowly missed a nightclub security guard who was standing inches away, prosecutors said. It lodged in the floor and was recovered by a bartender.

The gun was not licensed in New York or in New Jersey, where Burress lived. His license to carry a concealed weapon in the state of Florida had expired in May 2008.

Prosecutors said Pierce drove Burress to a hospital, then took the gun to his own home in New Jersey. It was later delivered to Burress’ home. Pierce, who also testified before the grand jury, was not charged.