Filed under: Football
Former New York Giant wide receiver Plaxico Burress' request for work release was denied.
Burress is currently serving a two-year prison sentence on charges of attempted criminal possession of a weapon. This was his second request for work release, and now he cannot request again until June 6, 2011, which by that time he should be released on good behavior.
"The serious and negative impact illegal guns have on the community coupled with [the] dangerous nature of the weapon discharging in a public place renders him unsuitable for work release," the state Department of Correctional Services said in regards to the denial.
Even if Burress did get work release, there is no guarantee that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell will reinstate him. Goodell did say, though, that Burress would be reinstated once his sentence was completed.
But even if Burress did get work release and was reinstated by the NFL, he'd still have to sell himself to an NFL team. There is no guarantee that the Giants will resign him or that any other NFL team would be interested in his services, which is a long shot to begin with.
The weapons possession charges stem from when Burress went to the Latin Quarter nightclub in New York, packing a .40-caliber gun. Apparently he was wearing a jogging or track suit and the gun slipped down his pants leg, went off and shot him in the thigh, missing a security guard in the vicinity. The gun wasn't licensed and his Florida permit for the gun had expired.
According to the Associated Press, Burress has been well-behaved in prison except for an incident where he lied about having permission to use the phone. He lost his phone privileges for a week and rec time for 30 days. He's also completed anger-management classes.