Bad Newz Kennels codefendant
pleads guilty in Vick dogfighting case
Thursday, October
25th, 2007
 Meanwhile, Michael Vick's Atlanta home has just been put up for
sale at $4.5 million.
Um, "Bad Newz Kennels?" If that's not self-explanatory,
what is? Oscar Allen, 67, pleaded guilty yesterday to a federal
dogfighting charge stemming from selling a champion pit bull to
suspended NFL quarterback Michael Vick's Bad Newz Kennels
operation.
Allen's plea is for conspiracy to travel in
interstate commerce to aid in illegal gambling, and sponsoring a dog in
animal fighting. These are the same charges that Vick and his
three other codefendants are facing; Vick will be sentenced in December,
Allen in January.
He sold a female pit bull named Jane to Bad
Newz Kennels in 2001, traveled with Vick's associate's to Jane's fights,
and advised Vick and the others on managing and caring for the fighting
dogs. He even admitted to helping Vick pit the dogs against each
other to narrow down which pit bulls were good fighters. He did
not, he told prosecutors, assist in the killing of any of the dogs that
failed to perform well.
He's facing a maximum of five years in
prison, a $250,000, and three years of supervised release.
Although U.S. Attorney Michael Gill recommended to the court that Allen
receive no prison time in compliance with the plea agreement, U.S.
District Judge Henry E. Hudson will not be bound by the recommendation,
and can still rule for time behind bars for the new
codefendant.
Other co-defendants are Purnell Peace,
Quanis Phillips, and Tony Taylor.
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