Burress is Wearing the Wrong Uniform

Plaxico Burress was finally sentenced, and now he is—shamefully—in jail for at least the next 20 months and possibly the next 24. Burress concealed a loaded handgun into a New York City club. To top it all off, the gun fired a bullet into his leg, he had to be rushed to the hospital, and no one called the police. Burress later agreed to a plea agreement that stated he attempted criminal possession of a weapon. It is no debate, Burress broke the law—he didn’t even have a license! Don’t get me wrong, I am in no way in favor of guns, especially handgun possession; however, I do not think Plax should be in jail, away from football(although if he wasn’t in jail he would deserve a suspension of some sort), and most importantly away from his family for the next two years. This belief doesn’t just stem from my opposition to jails and prisons; it comes from the fact that the only reasons we have to force people to confinement is to punish them for their actions, and to keep them away from society. Isn’t there a sufficient alternative punishment? Don’t you think getting shot was a significant punishment already? If not, how about some community service too?

Let’s consider the situation a little bit more. Just a year before this incident, Sean Taylor was killed while at his home, and he was without a gun while the murderers had at least one gun. Sean Taylor was at a major disadvantage. Once again, I am not in favor of guns, in my country I’d eliminate all handguns, but if Taylor had a gun, he’d be on track for his fourth Pro Bowl selection. And then this summer, Steve McNair was murdered by a gun too. Once again, he was unarmed. McNair’s murder might not have been prevented even if he was armed, but it is another example of a celebrity being a target. Plaxico Burress broke the law, yes, but can you blame him for being a little paranoid? The media over covers celebrity murders, and Plax didn’t want to be the next.

Even though it sounds un-egalitarian, we live in a society where celebrities should be held to different rules and laws. They have to deal with being photographed in public, sex-tape scandals, and sexual harassment accusations far too often, only because they are rich and famous. Not to say the everyday person does not have to deal with these problems, but the problems aren't at the same level. If you were late to work or a meeting, would you receive a $1,500 fine? Professional athletes have that kind of pressure on them. They deserve different standards. I understand that Plaxico Burress broke the law and he is supposed to be punished for it. But two years of jail time is way too much. He already shot himself and lost his job, there has to be an alternative way of teaching him and other celebrities a lesson. Because that is ultimately the point of the sentence, right? Really the best solution to this problem is to ban possession and purchase of handguns all together and force people to fight with battle-axes.