I’m not against people carrying weapons, if they are licensed and trained, and know better than to reach for it if a perp has a weapon pointed at their skull.

But you can ask anyone in law enforcement and they will tell you that statistics say that a robbery victim pulling out a gun during the robbery ends badly for the victim much more often than it turns out well.

For just *carrying* a gun, I can see not handing out jail time. However, Plax discharged his weapon in a club, which is definitely a crime, in addition to the crime of having an unlicensed weapon. A bystander could have been injured or even killed; that isn’t something you just let go. Hence, jail time.

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That’s a good point. I didn’t mean to gloss over the fact that the weapon discharged.

And I really don’t have a problem with Plax doing time. But I still feel that 2 years was excessive to the act, given the circumstances and the defendant’s previous record.

And I will still maintain that an ordinary citizen with a relatively clean record who did exactly what Plax did would have received less than 24 months.

broncsfan says:
Jan 27, 2011 11:38 AM
I hope so. The guy served more time than Michael Vick for shooting himself in the leg, which almost seems like punishment enough by itself. Most of the time celebrities get special treatment, but in this case it’s pretty clear (in fact, Bloomberg admitted as much) that Burress got a much worse sentence than a normal citizen would have.
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You’re absolutely right. It is common knowledge that even though NYC has these supposed “mandatory” sentencing laws for carrying an unlicensed firearm, first time offenders who aren’t carrying the gun in the commission of another crime rarely, if ever, get jail time.

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For just *carrying* a gun, I can see not handing out jail time. However, Plax discharged his weapon in a club, which is definitely a crime, in addition to the crime of having an unlicensed weapon. A bystander could have been injured or even killed; that isn’t something you just let go. Hence, jail time.

Shooting a gun inside a barroom- intentional or accidental – IS a criminal offense, moron.

If the trajectory of that bullet -which Burress had no control of where it was fired – had been a little different, we could be talking about a homicide here.

So because his teammate got robbed he decided to carry a gun on him? Just in case these robbers are specifically targeting New York Giants receivers

“Who gets 2 plus years for shooting himself? People get less time for killing somebody!!”

In Baltimore they name a street after you.

If you get robbed at gunpoint, you can have a gun in every pocket and it ain’t gonna help you.

Unless you can reach into your pocket, get your hand wrapped around the grip, your finger through the trigger guard (not as easy as it looks on TV when your adrenalin is racing), remove the weapon, aim it at your assailant and pull the trigger in the split second it takes your assailant to pull his trigger, the only person getting shot is you.

I’m pretty sure it was an HK, but I’ve been wrong before. I will say this, there are more safeties on a Glock than on a revolver.

I hope so. The guy served more time than Michael Vick for shooting himself in the leg, which almost seems like punishment enough by itself. Most of the time celebrities get special treatment, but in this case it’s pretty clear (in fact, Bloomberg admitted as much) that Burress got a much worse sentence than a normal citizen would have.
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Rumor had it that the DA had agreed to a deal that would have Plax serve 90 days, plus community service. Plax was adamant about zero jail time, and turned down the deal. Yet another bad decision by Plax.
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bw82b says: Jan 27, 2011 12:00 PM

Does everyone forget that Giants WR Steve Smith was robbed at gunpoint merely days before the plax incident?? Obviously he should’ve had his pistol on safe but I can kinda understand why he was packin heat.
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First, the gun was a Glock – no safety. (Glocks use a safe-action trigger, but you have to carry them properly, i.e., in a holster, not in your waistband.)

Second, having a gun is only useful if you pull it first. Once a guy starts waving a gun in your face, trying to pull your own weapon will only get you shot.

(I always thought this was the absolute dumbest argument for carrying a gun. In any one-on-one situation, you will never have a chance to use it.)

You’re absolutely right. It is common knowledge that even though NYC has these supposed “mandatory” sentencing laws for carrying an unlicensed firearm, first time offenders who aren’t carrying the gun in the commission of another crime rarely, if ever, get jail time.

Lord knows there are plenty of players in the league who have done far worse. I hope he gets another shot- if he can’t play, he can’t play. But he deserves the chance.

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Have you been to Minnesota? No need for the Vikings to move to Utah to have a boring night life.

As I recall, he was carrying an HK LEM .40, which would explain the lack of a traditional manual safety.

Unless we’re willing to bet it all on Victor Cruz being the #2 or #3 guy in ’11, I really think Plax will be back with Big Blue.

I’m still wondering who all of the less desirable teams were.