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Ralph Vacchiano | Facebook | Twitter | Archive

DeAndre Baker is in a lot of trouble and is facing an uncertain future, to say the least. His NFL career is obviously hanging by a thread. His freedom is in serious jeopardy, too.

The announcement by the Miramar (Fla.) Police Department on Thursday that they had issued an arrest warrant for the Giants cornerback was just the beginning of what could be a long and painful process for the 22-year-old former first-round pick.

Here, with the help of some legal and NFL sources, is a look at what Baker is facing and what comes next:

 

 

What are the charges?

 Baker, according to the arrest warrant issued on Thursday night, is going to be charged with four counts of armed robbery and four counts of aggravated assault with a firearm. With the help of Seattle Seahawks cornerback Quinton Dunbar and an unnamed, masked accomplice, Baker is accused of robbing four men of a total of $12,400 in cash and $61,000 worth of watches. The warrant said he used a semi-automatic weapon in the robberies. One witness said he also told the unnamed accomplice to shoot the victims (though the warrant does not mention any shots being fired or any injuries to the victims).

What is the legal penalty?

According to Florida’s “10-20-Life” law, each count of armed robbery carries a minimum sentence of 10 years in prison, but that is escalated to 15 years if a “semi-automatic weapon” is involved, which is alleged here. So that would be a minimum of 60 years just on those counts. The counts of aggravated assault with a firearm has no mandatory minimum, just a maximum sentence of five years in prison per count.

So if he’s guilty, he’s going to jail for a long time then? Not necessarily. One Florida-based attorney told SNY that a prosecutor has the ability to waive the mandatory minimum and seek a lesser sentence. There is, of course, always the possibility of pleading down to a lesser charge.

When he turns himself in, will he be released on bail?

Not necessarily, but probably — eventually. All eight counts are listed on the warrant as “no bond hold,” which means Baker can’t simply show up, pay his bail, and head back to the Giants’ virtual offseason program. When he is arrested, he will be held by the Miramar Police Department until he can appear before Circuit County Court Judge Carlos Rebollo, the Broward County judge who signed the arrest warrant. Judge Rebollo will then hold a bond hearing and set bail, if he chooses. It’s not clear, though, when that hearing will take place and if there will be any delay related to the current COVID-19 pandemic.

Why hasn’t he turned himself in yet?

Good question, and of course he should have done so already. According to a Miramar Police Department spokesman, they have been in touch with his lawyer. One source said there was an expectation that Baker would turn himself in on Friday. One legal source said the lawyer is likely negotiating the terms of Baker turning himself in – everything from doing it quietly, away from the media, and an expedited bail hearing, if possible.

In the meantime, what are the Giants going to do with him? Probably nothing at the moment. So far they are following the standard playbook for dealing with arrests. They issued a statement that said nothing and then they closed ranks. If they continue to follow that, they will wait for the legal process to play itself out and let the NFL take the lead on any investigation and discipline. There may come a point when they’ll have to decide whether to keep him or cut him, but that’s likely a long ways away.

Would they cut him?

Maybe eventually, especially if the details get out and are even uglier than what is known so far. Obviously, the Giants don’t want to dump a talented young player, especially a year after they traded into the first round to draft him. But they might eventually feel they have no choice. It just probably won’t happen until the legal system runs its course and the NFL takes the initial shot at discipline.

What are the cap ramifications of cutting him?

Baker is entering the second year of a $10.5 million rookie contract. He already got a $5.67 million signing bonus and he’s due $973,442 in salary this season, all of which is guaranteed. At minimum, cutting Baker would cost the Giants an extra $2.3 million against the cap this season, and he’d leave a lot of dead money on their books over the next two years. However, they’d likely try to negotiate all that down and possibly try to recoup some of his signing bonus.

Video: FNNY: Breaking down Baker, what to do with DeAndre?

What is the NFL going to do?

At the very least, it seems certain that the NFL will place Baker on the “Commissioner’s exempt list,” which is basically paid leave and it’s used to prevent players accused of violent crimes from being active while their cases are pending. It also conveniently takes such decisions out of teams’ hands. Baker eventually would be subject to discipline under the NFL’s Personal Conduct policy, even if he pleads down to a lesser charge or if charges are dropped. Under the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, that would be decided by a neutral third party jointly appointed by the NFL and NFL Players Association. Commissioner Roger Goodell is no longer the judge and jury for that.

Has Baker said anything yet?

No. Multiple calls to his agent were not returned to SNY either. And it’s not clear at this point which lawyer is representing him. You can bet that lawyer will issue some kind of statement after Baker’s arrest.

Have the Giants said anything yet?

Just a bland statement through their PR department that said “We are aware of the situation. We have been in contact with DeAndre. We have no further comment at this time.”

Should they say anything more?

They are probably right not to say anything now, since we likely don’t have anywhere near all the facts yet. But eventually, yes, they need to say something. And they all do – John Mara, Dave Gettleman and Joe Judge.

Hopefully they learned something from how they mishandled the Josh Brown affair – when they re-signed their kicker despite a domestic violence arrest, only to cut him once the media unearthed all the sordid details. They let Ben McAdoo, their young coach, take the lead publicly and he ended up praising Brown’s character though he clearly didn’t know all the details of what happened. Then, when the details came out, Mara and then-GM Jerry Reese refused to say anything for more than a week.

Now’s not the time, but they can’t wait forever. If they decide to stand by a player who is accused of using a gun to rob people and ordering the victims to be shot, they owe it to everyone to explain why. Hiding behind statements will make them look terrible, again.

The bottom line

Will Baker ever play for the Giants again? It’s hard to predict, and he is of course innocent until proven guilty. But if the accusations in that warrant hold up – and there are multiple witnesses, including someone who has known Baker since he was a child – it’s hard to imagine that he will, even if he escapes jail time. Sports teams are often tolerant of criminal behavior – especially for players with talent — and the Giants have been no exception over the years. It’s certainly possible that, if he’s granted his freedom, they’d welcome him back and sell it as a chance for redemption. But you’d have to think that some of these allegations cross a line they just won’t want to cross, even for a player with Baker’s potential.

Pittsburgh Pirates closer Felipe Vazquez faces multiple felony charges in Florida and Pennsylvania for allegedly having sex with a 13-year-old girl whom he met at PNC Park

The first set of charges are from Lee County, Florida. Vazquez on Tuesday was charged with using computer pornography to solicit a child for sex and providing obscene material to minors. The charges reflect a multi-state law enforcement operation involving officers from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Pennsylvania State Police. They executed a search warrant at Vazquez’s apartment in Pittsburgh on Tuesday morning. The officers seized several electronic devices from the residence. Shortly thereafter, Vazquez was arrested and booked at the Allegheny County Jail. He will soon be arraigned and faces eventual extradition to Lee County.

According to a statement released by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the police investigation into Vazquez started last month. At that time, officers learned that two years ago, Vazquez had engaged in sexual acts with a 13-year-old girl who resides in Lee County. This pattern of sexual conduct continued, with the victim and Vazquez texting one another and using video to record their sexual acts. Apparently, Vazquez texted her with plans to meet for sex after the Pirates season ended.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan reports the victim told police she initially met Vazquez while he was in the bullpen at PNC Park. The two then exchanged texts and other electronic messages.

He also declined to comment on whether the IRFU had any prior knowledge of his attendance at Belfast Crown Court during his day off on Wednesday.

After two questions of Best’s regular pre-game engagement, the IRFU media manager stepped in to say that Best would only talk about tomorrow’s Six Nations opener against France at the Parisian venue.

Later, when asked if he was aware of the controversy on social media around his involvement due to his decision on Wednesday, the press officer again stepped in before Best could reply.

Best attended court proceedings alongside Ireland second-row Iain Henderson and Ulster team-mate Craig Gilroy.

Jackson and Olding are accused of raping a 19-year-old woman in June 2016, with Jackson also facing an additional charge of sexual assault. They both deny the charges.

A third man, former Ulster Academy player Blane McIlroy, is charged with indecent exposure, while ex-UCD and Belfast Harlequins player Rory Harrison is accused of perverting the course of justice and withholding information.

All four deny the charges.

When asked about Ireland’s unusual position as favourites in tomorrow’s game, Best said the team were not getting carried away.

“I don’t think the favourites tag is something we’ve talked about. By and large we give the opposition the respect we deserve, we treat every opposition as they come and study them,” Best said.

“Our record here hasn’t been great, we’ve stressed that to the guys who haven’t been here before. That Champ win four years ago came down to the wire, we got a slice of luck but you make your own luck.

“Our standards are very high, we’ve players who are used to winning and we put a lot of pressure on ourselves to perform and put pressure on each other.”