Antonio Pierce To Face Criminal Charges

With the Plaxico Burress case heating up in NYC Antonio Pierce finds himself in an unsuspecting position.

The Giants linebacker who accompanied Plax to the club on the night when the receiver infamously... well "Plaxicoed" himself, is now facing criminal charges from a somewhat overzealous DA. Apparently after Burress shot himself Pierce took the gun from him and brought it to Burress's home.

The New York DA appears to be going after a weapons possession charge which carries a minimum sentence of 3 1/2 years.

John Mara, the co-owner of the Giants, has thrown his support behind is player:

While we in no way condone Antonio's decision to be in a nightclub in Manhattan less than two days before a game, we cannot understand the DA's position that Antonio is subject to criminal charges. When this incident occurred, Antonio reacted out of concern for the health and well-being of Plaxico Burress. His first priority was to make sure Plaxico received proper medical attention for what very well could have been a life-threatening wound. There was no criminal intent on the part of Antonio, who was thrust into this predicament simply because he accompanied Plaxico that evening and because he made the decision to immediately take Plaxico to the hospital.

Mara is making the right move here. It does seem like a stretch to go after Pierce in this case and I'm sure it helps him out to know that the Giants are throwing him under the bus. Apparently an upcoming DA election is having an effect on these cases as the District Attorney is trying to appear tough on crime by using these highly public cases as a medium.

If charged with a crime Pierce could also face more punishment from the league. Although it is hard to believe that these charges will stick. We will keep you posted.