Legal perspective on Vick and the Eagles
The Philadelphia Daily News - Eagletarian
Legal perspective on Vick and the Eagles
Daily News staff
Eagletarian has gone second generation today, as Allison Domowitch -- a lawyer, lifelong Eagles fan, ocassional blogger, and daughter of Paul Domowitch -- provides a legal perspective on the Michael Vick saga.
Now that I’ve had a few days to reflect on the events of the last few days with regard to the Eagles’ signing of Michael Vick, I've formed a more decisive opinion on the issue than I had when the news first broke last Thursday night.
Michael Vick's actions were flat-out despicable. It literally brings tears to my eyes to think about the things he and his dog-fighting cohorts did to those poor animals. While I wouldn't put him up there with the likes of child molesters and rapists, I have a unique sympathy for animals (we own two beagles, including one we adopted from Animal Welfare) and an accompanying disgust for people who mistreat them. Dogs are completely dependent, to the point of unconditional loyalty, on the people who take care of them; they have no defenses or alternative options if those same caretakers abuse them. I have no respect for someone who beats his wife, but at least she is physically capable of leaving the situation. Thus, any person who mercilessly beats, tortures or murders a defenseless animal is a special kind of disgusting.
Vick served 18 months of a 2 year sentence in Leavenworth for those actions. We can sit here all day and debate the finepoints of the judicial system in this country, but for all intents and purposes Michael Vick has satisfied his punishment for crimes committed in the eyes of the law. It remains to be seen whether he has been rehabilitated, and we may never know whether he is truly sorry beyond mere regret for the death of his career. Nevertheless, given precedent in the NFL to allow other felonious athletes to be reinstated after serving their punishment, my personal repulsion at his crimes does not justify his situation being treated any differently.
Maybe it's just the underlying defense attorney in me, but I believe that once you've paid your debts and served your time, you shouldn't be continually punished by the rest of the universe. Either keep them in jail or let let them be truly released from punishment. "But," you might argue, "my job wouldn't hire me back if I committed a violent felony, so why should his?" I understand this argument, as the state bars to whom I must report would certainly not be so forgiving of its lawyers. However, being a professional football player is not a job that inherently requires honesty and morality as does the practice of law or medicine. Whether or not you believe these well-paid athletes should be better role models, their job description is essentially to show up and play ball. Vick is not the first nor the last in an absurdly long line of wifebeaters, sexual deviants, drug abusers, animal abusers, drunk drivers, and general douchebags that play professional sports in this country. As shocking as his crimes were, even more shocking to me has been the uniquely harsh reaction that his return has received compared to these other criminals.
I never in a million years expected Philadelphia to be the city in which Vick would land. However, football is a business like any other, and Andy Reid and Joe Banner and Jeffrey Lurie are businessmen trying to improve their product. From a football perspective, this may prove to be genius or it may blow up in their faces, but regardless it is their job to try to craft that football product in whatever way they can. I'm highly disturbed that many fans are treating the Eagles' front office as if they themselves were in Virginia partaking in these crimes. Vick may be a horrible person, but he was absolutely going to be signed by some team -- it's not like the Eagles plucked him off the streets to give him a second chance that he wouldn't have otherwise had. Ninety-nine percent of the Eagles detractors hadn't said a word about his reinstatement until he came here, which seems a tad hypocritical. I'm hardly saying these former fans should run out and get No. 7 jerseys, but it seems rather extreme to abandon a team that they've been following for decades over what essentially boils down to a personnel decision.
I suspect that if Vick pans out on the football field, the complaints will die down- we're Eagles fans for God's sake; we're as faithful as they come. My initial reluctance over this signing was that he can't possibly be worth the $1.6 million price tag (and the PR nightmare that this decision has proved to be). But frankly, my skepticism is slowly fading as I deliriously think of all of the offensive weapons that will adorn the field this season. Any time Vick is on the field, he'll be a threat in some way, shape or form, and that constant looming threat has to at least have some advantage. I'll put my concerns aside and let his performance speak for itself in the coming weeks. After all, the legal system has concluded its judgment, so why shouldn't we?
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To read our earlier post from today's practice, click here.
I do not feel this person has suffered enough. He does not even appear to be seriously disturbed by his actions. It appears he is just laughing it off. I could tell by his facial expression during television interviews, he was not bothered by his disturbing actions at all. Did he receive psychiatric or psychological counseling, or even anger management? I feel a considerable portion of his annual income should be set aside to fund causes against animal cruelty. He should also be made the spokesperson. Will members of the Eagles Org. allow their dogs or children to be left alone with him. Absolutely not! He is an abuser and not to be trusted with an animal or human being. They don't seem to care because these were just dogs no one cared about. The Eagles Org. should be shut down and replaced for this terrible decision. They lack character. It's as if to say let a first degree murderer go free without punishment so he can freely kill others.— verne23- It is very sad how desperate the Eagles Org. has become. Trust me, they will not make it to the Super Bown this year either. Every team will make certain to beat them as an expression of their disapproval. Every game will be picketed. He will become so nervous and afraid for his safety, he won't be able to play, become injured and out for the season.— verne23
- Vick made a very interesting comment during his recent 60-minutes interview. When asked how he got involved with dogfighting, he told James Brown that he was introduced to it when he was 8 years old. I thought to myself "introduced to it by whom and where did they get it from." A little research revealed that it was introduced to North America by English settlers, and was not illegal for much of last century. It's not too much of a stretch to conclude that some of the very people now demonizing Vick need to check the family tree. It also wouldn't be too much of a stretch to conclude that some of Vick's precedents, as well as those of others in his childhood community, were required or forced to maintain these animals (and may very well been used as bait for them), again by the English. I applaud the Humane Society's efforts to stamp out this blood sport, but I think some have already lost sight of the fact that a cultural shift is in order. They need to come down off of their judgmental high horses and exhibit as much concern for humanity as they do for their pets.— newview
- Is there a total lack of talent in existence?? Why is a person that was not actually spectacular playing for the falcons such a commodity... Is there nobody that can play football that has not been away from the action for so many months, or do teams in the pros actually think we want street thugs playing in games we watch. I personally want only athletes that put real values first and not illegal activities so they look cool or whatever the crappy reasoning might be. I want to watch athletes that want to play a game they respect and I also do not want anyone that commits a crime to play ever again!!! Is there some shortage of folks that do not commit crime??? Also, I am not religious and so the entire argument that I am attempting to pass judgment is incorrect as I am merely in favor of people earning their opportunities rather than being handed them because there controversy might bring a couple other thugs to the stands.— john200913
- I guess that when it comes down to sports, any action can be forgiven, except gambling on sports, ala Rose. However, the author needs to ask the question, if a lawyer was convicted of a felony, what would happen to them. DISBARRMENT and never be allowed to work in the profession again. When you allow someone to practice their chosen profession, you encourage those who look up to them as role models to emulate them. Since, Vick is now employed by The Philadelphia Football Team, they need to change their name to the "Felons".— Floridaze1
Comment removed.- Spoken like a true defense lawyer... She'll forget and forgive all those horrific acts Vick masterminded once he throws a touchdown pass or runs through the defense. And she'll remind you that she has dogs, so she understands how others feel, and it's okay to forget about what he's done. It's not about whether or not he's paid his debt to society. It's about what fans and people in general will morally and ethically support. If a team chooses to sign him, so be it. People aren't obligated to support him or the team that signs him (because it was a personnel decision). Nobody is stopping Vick from applying at Walmart. This woman is already beginning to forget about the cruelty of what Vick has done, simply by dreaming of all the great plays he migh make on the field. She's a phony and a moral sell-out. Not my words - hers. And she put it all in black & white for all to read. Gotta love them lawyers...— Hobbes1
- newview - A weaker argument, I have not seen. You ask the reader twice to go down your rabbit hole by "reassuring" them that "it would not be too much of stretch" to go along with you and manufacture facts not in evidence. "Conclusions", mind you, that even if any of them were proven, would have absolutely no relevance to the current set of circumstances. The Eagles, their corporate sponsors and the League will continue to feel the pressure until this situation is resolved.— flagator
- Where did you find this lady Les? Was her only qualification "being a lawyer?" "While I wouldn't put him up there with the likes of child molesters and rapists, I have a unique sympathy for animals. . . and an accompanying disgust for people who mistreat them. . . I have no respect for someone who beats his wife, but at least she is physically capable of leaving the situation." Are you kidding me? As a lawyer myself, this woman has apparently never actually stepped foot into a courthouse. Did she just graduate? That entire statement shows such a cloistered attitude that it makes me sad for my profession. 90% of the time women in abusive relationships cannot leave the relationship because they are financially dependent, there are children involved, or they have nowhere else to go. Yes, she can “physically” walk out the door… to be homeless, and leave her children to get beaten? Also, this grouping of Vick with child molesters and rapists is inane. Has she actually ever met the victim of a rape, or a child who has been molested? I’m sorry she is an “animal lover” but seeing the destroyed victim of an attack is 100% in a different category than some dead dogs. This article is irresponsible and the above statement derogates the human victims of terrible, terrible crimes.— Smurfalot
- Figured it was only a matter of time before the crazy "Battered Woman Syndrome" lady came cryin in. Maybe it's because I'm a guy, but I have a hard time with the notion that women are as helpless as dogs like you're suggesting. And as a lawyer myself, I wonder how you think this has anything to do with being in a courtroom. In my 3 years of work I haven't stepped foot in court once. Makes me think you're not really an attorney, or at least not a very good one, Ms. Smurf. I wonder if you tell these battered gals whom you know so much about that you compare them to animals?— mdougherty416
- "I have a unique sympathy for animals (we own two beagles, including one we adopted from Animal Welfare) and an accompanying disgust for people who mistreat them." I think that you fail to understand "unique". "I believe that once you've paid your debts and served your time, you shouldn't be continually punished by the rest of the universe. Either keep them in jail or let let them be truly released from punishment." People have a right to hate - some people will hate Vick regardless of what he now says or does - that's their right. Some people will hate the people who hate Vick - and that's their right!— Warhound
- @mdougherty416 --- One, I'm a guy. Two, thanks to www.philly.com squashing my response instead of breaking it into paragraphs as I wrote it, I think that when I quoted Ms. Domowitch, you read it as my quote. --- As for thinking "women are as helpless as dogs like you're suggesting." I have no idea where you go that... but an overwhelming majority of victims of domestic violence, are tied in innumerable ways to their attacker (check out statistics on how many cases are dropped), and I say that from work I have done with Safe Horizons, Legal Aid and the district attorney's office. --- I wasn't comparing them to dogs, I was saying that they are human beings, and Ms. Domowitch's quote "I have no respect for someone who beats his wife, but at least she is physically capable of leaving the situation" is grossly unfair to the victims. --- As for stepping into a courtroom, apparently Ms. Domowitch just graduated BU Law... and from the sounds of it, you yourself have never dealt with victims of violence either. So perhaps you should get off your high horse before you go about grouping canine and human victims in the same sentence, and assuming the "crazy "Battered Woman Syndrome" lady" is a girl.— Smurfalot
- I wonder how long it will take Vick to scope out a crip in North or West Philly with a sound proof basement so that he can start up another dog fighting ring. He could run a good business in those neighborhoods. That could really supplement the income of his one year contract in case things don't work out on the field. That way he could stick with what he's really good at. Maybe he could even get Ray Emery from the Flyers to room with him. They'd make a cute couple.— Stinger
- Shakespeare did "pen" "kill all the lawyers." But you obviously don't understand the context of the quote as you have taken it out of context. The full quote is: "First thing we do is kill all the lawyers." and the context of the quote is another Shakespearean character describing how the world would be if he were king and in charge. His buddy utters the line as a means of effecting his fantasy rise to despotic power. Michael Vick admitted to more criminal activity (money laundering, illegal gambling, false statements, animal cruelty, etc...) than they got Al Capone for (tax evasion)... and all he had to do was spent 18 months working out and mopping floors at night before going back to his life... Lurie should be ashamed of himself.— Frank_Castle
- flagator, you may try to minimize the argument, but the history of dogfighting in America is what it is, and the history of whipping, bombing, burning, and lynching slaves and their progeny in America is what it is (and continues to be in some places). Therefore,again, it's not too much a stretch to conclude that slaves learned about dogfighting through involvement (forced or otherwise) with their master's activities , and passed that knowledge on to their descendants. Given it's history, how else do you propose a tradition of dogfighting could exist in a ghetto neighborhood in Newport News, Virginia? If you have facts to refute this argument, please post them. Let us keep the focus on the Humane Society's call for a cultural shift on this issue. Certainly Vick has the ability to connect with youth who might otherwise be drawn into this blood sport to a much greater degree than Joe Blow from Podunk. He can do society a lot of good, and should be encouraged to do so. By the way, as far as his Eagle's contract is concerned, it's lunch money compared to Eli Manning's.— newview
