Click Here

     *For every two positive stories about Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick, a negative one pops up to keep him stuck in a public relations nightmare.

      The former Virginia Tech player had recently made headlines for teaming with the United Way to donate $10,000 to the families of those affected by the recent massacre at the school. The following week, it was reported that he left members of Congress hanging after missing a connecting flight to D.C.

      On Friday, Vick was in New York to take part in activities leading up to the NFL draft. But he ended up being bombarded with questions about a recent police raid on one of his homes that turned up evidence of illegal dog fighting.

      Vick told reporters that he is an unwitting victim of relatives living on his property in Smithfield, Va.

      "I'm never at the house," Vick said, according to ajc.com. "I left the house with my family members and my cousin. They just haven't been doing the right thing."

      According to reports, police raided the Vick-owned house as part of a drug investigation and found dozens of dogs, some injured and emaciated. Investigators also discovered items associated with dog fighting. Vick said he knows nothing about such activity occurring on his property.

      "It's unfortunate I have to take the heat," he said. "If I'm not there, I don't know what's going on. It's a call for me to really tighten down on who I'm trying to take care of. When it all boils down, people will try to take advantage of you and leave you out to dry. Lesson learned for me."

      John Goodwin, who handles dog-fighting issues for The Humane Society of America, isn’t buying that Vick was unaware of such a large operation — especially when police were led to the property as part of a drug investigation after arresting the quarterback's 26-year-old cousin, Davon Boddie.     

      Goodwin said authorities found 66 dogs on the property, mostly pit bulls that appeared to be involved in organized fighting. He estimated it would cost up to $100 a day just to feed that number of animals, not to mention other hefty expenses.

      Goodwin said The Humane Society has heard for several years that Vick was personally involved in the clandestine activity, which is banned nationwide and a felony in 48 states, including Virginia and Georgia. A conviction in Virginia carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $2,500 fine.     

      "We get a lot of calls, and people were always kind of kicking his name around," Goodwin said. "But it was always difficult to put together a complete case on the guy. The word is that he has multiple layers of protection. When the search warrant was executed and they found all the things they found, it really came as no surprise."