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Jun 12, 2009 6:30 pm US/Central
Burress Gun Case Adjourned Until September
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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Wide receiver Plaxico Burress of the New York Giants is led to a squad car for transport to his arraignment outside the NYPD 17th Precinct on Dec.1, 2008, in New York City.
Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images
Former New York Giants wide receiver Plaxico Burress will have to wait a while longer before he knows the legal consequences of accidentally shooting himself with an unlicensed pistol.
Defense lawyer Benjamin Brafman said Burress will appear in court Monday for a brief hearing. Brafman said Burress and prosecutors have yet to agree on a plea deal and the case will be adjourned until September.
Burress shot himself in the thigh on Nov. 29 in a Manhattan nightclub. He was charged with criminal possession of a weapon and faces up to 3 1/2 years in prison. Burress has pleaded not guilty and is free on $100,000 bail.
Burress caught the game-winning touchdown for the Giants in the 2008 Super Bowl. He is a free agent after the team released him on April 3.
While Burress is free to sign with any team, the unresolved legal matter could make teams reluctant to add the talented wide receiver. In addition, even if he ultimately does not serve any time in jail on the weapons charge -- most first-time offenders in similar cases in New York City do not -- he could face disciplinary action by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell under the league's personal conduct policy.
But veteran 6-foot-5 receivers with a proven ability to stretch a defense are a valuable commodity in the NFL. The New York Jets acknowledged publicly they had contacted Burress' agent, Drew Rosenhaus, to inquire about him before the NFL draft in April.
With the criminal case dragging on at least three more months and possibly longer, establishing Burress' value may be a challenge for interested teams.
The Giants had signed Burress to a five-year, $35 million contract extension in September. The team later withheld $1 million after the shooting and the NFL Players Association filed a grievance on Burress' behalf. A special master ruled that the Giants had to pay Burress because the money was a signing bonus he earned upon agreeing to the contract extension and could not be withheld for future conduct.
Burress has 505 career receptions for 7,845 yards and 55 touchdowns in nine seasons with the Giants and Pittsburgh Steelers.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who has waged a long campaign against illegal guns, has publicly castigated Burress for carrying the .40-caliber weapon. And there was talk of a cover-up by the Giants and the NFL after the Nov. 28 incident at the Latin Quarter after it took police nearly 12 hours to figure out Burress had shot himself and was hospitalized; the player turned himself in three days later.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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