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Saturday

Burress is expected to be out two weeks after accidentally shooting himself in the leg Friday.

Details are sketchy, but apparently Burress' leg was grazed by a bullet from his own gun. "From everything I've heard, he was really lucky," said a member of Burress' family. The report says Burress could return in a couple weeks.

Sunday

Burress is expected to be arrested on felony weapons charges in the next few days, the New York Daily News reports. Carrying an illegal, concealed weapon in New York carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 3.5 years.

Burress accidentally shot himself in the thigh in a New York night club while carrying his own gun. The injury isn't life threatening and he could be ready to play in as little as two weeks. However, he faces serious legal problems for carrying an unlicensed hand gun in New York. Burress reportedly didn't have a license to carry a concealed weapon in New York and had an expired license from Florida for his firearm. Antonio Pierce may also be in legal hot water after reportedly trying to hide the gun while taking Burress to the hospital. Burress' status for the rest of the season is very much in doubt given his injury and legal woes.

(other stories at the moment smile

Plaxico Burress appeared in court Monday on weapons possession charges stemming from an accidental shooting at a Manhattan nightclub.

Manhattan Criminal Court Judge Felicia Mennin set bail at $100,000 and ordered Burress to return March 31.

Defense lawyer Benjamin Brafman argued for no bail, saying: "He has 35 million reasons to come back to court" -- referring to the $35 million contract extension Burress signed with the Giants during the offseason.

Prosecutors also released a criminal complaint that provides a witness account from the club where the New York Giants wide receiver accidentally shot himself at the nightclub Friday night.

A witness heard a popping sound before Burress' legs began to shake. It says the person saw a bloody pistol fall out of his pant leg and land on the floor.

If convicted, Burress could face 3½ to 15 years in jail.

Burress surrendered to authorities on a weapons possession charge earlier Monday, and authorities said that teammate Antonio Pierce is also being investigated over his role in the accidental shooting.

Burress, who was led out of the police precinct in handcuffs, was silent but held his head high as a crowd that included Giants fans hovered nearby with cell phone cameras. Burress planned to plead not guilty to the charge during a Monday afternoon court appearance, said his lawyer, Benjamin Brafman.

Burress was treated at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center overnight Friday and was released Saturday.

The episode set off a frenzy that showed no signs of letting up Monday: Police said the case could expand beyond Burress, with authorities investigating Pierce and whether the hospital failed to report the shooting.

The NFL is closely monitoring the developments as well.

A more detailed timeline of the evening has also emerged. Police said Pierce, Burress and running back Derrick Ward arrived at the club with two other people around 11:30 p.m. ET Friday.

Burress had been allowed to bypass security, even though they knew he was armed, according to a law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity. The club is said to be fully cooperating in the investigation.

Around 12:05 a.m., as Burress was being escorted to a VIP area with a drink in one hand, he somehow ended up fumbling his gun and it discharged, hitting his thigh. Pierce was with him when that occurred, police said.

It's believed Pierce helped retrieve the gun and take Burress to the car, and then left with him, police said.

It's unclear what occurred during the two hours that followed.

Burress showed up at the hospital around 2:20 a.m. and was discharged at 1 p.m. Saturday.

The gun was eventually recovered at Burress' house in New Jersey, authorities said.

Brafman refused to respond to media reports about an alleged coverup, other than to say: "I think a lot of what's been in the press is not accurate."

Burress arrived at a police station early Monday in a black Cadillac Escalade wearing jeans and a black coat. Burress, who was not visibly limping, did not speak to the media.

"He is standing tall. He is a mature adult," said Brafman, a well-known defense lawyer who represented hip-hop impresario Sean "Diddy" Combs on a bribery and gun possession charge in 2001. "I think any professional athlete in this situation would be concerned."

He said Burress is feeling OK. "If they let him play, he will be able to play. ... I think he will be a superstar for the rest of his career."

"My hope is that it plays out well and he can continue his career, because he's a good person I think, with a brilliant athletic career. And it would be a terrible sadness if an isolated incident could ruin a life," said Brafman.

The case also drew the wrath of Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who has waged a long fight against illegal guns during his time in office. He called for a full prosecution of state law that requires mandatory prison for carrying a loaded handgun.

"I don't think anybody should be exempt from that, and I think it would be an outrage if we didn't prosecute to the fullest extent of the law, particularly people who live in the public domain, make their living because of their visibility -- they're the role models for our kids," Bloomberg said.

He also lashed out at the hospital, based on the allegation that officials may not have properly reported the shooting.

"It's just an outrage that the hospital didn't do what they were legally required to do. It's a misdemeanor, it's a chargeable offense, and I think the district attorney should certainly go after the management of this hospital. The lame excuse that they didn't know -- this is a world class hospital," he said.

Pierce deflected several questions after Sunday's game against the Washington Redskins. He wouldn't say whether he has a lawyer and when asked if he is concerned about his own situation, Pierce replied: "No. I'm fine where I'm at.

"I am not answering any questions about the incident that happened Friday night. If you have anything to say about the Washington Redskins, this game and moving forward, I'll answer it. Anything else, I'm not answering."

Giants coach Tom Coughlin said he spoke to his players about Burress' situation but wouldn't get into specifics.

"We all are upset about what happened with Plaxico, and hopefully he's going to be fine and so on and so forth. That's our first concern," Coughlin said.

Reese and Giants president and CEO John Mara said they hadn't spoken to Burress, who hurt his hamstring two weeks ago. "I reached out to him," Reese said. "I did not get a return phone call."

Mara repeatedly said the Giants would cooperate with the police and the NFL in their investigations.

"This is a law enforcement matter and we are continuing to cooperate fully with the police," NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said in a statement. "In addition, it will be reviewed under our league policies."

Burress caught the go-ahead touchdown pass in the Giants' Super Bowl victory against the New England Patriots in February, following a regular season in which he scored a career-high 12 TDs. He was rewarded with a $35 million, five-year contract.

Burress has 35 catches for 454 yards and four touchdowns while constantly drawing double coverage this season.

Off the field, he was suspended for a game against Seattle in October and fined $117,500 for missing a team meeting and failing to notify the Giants of his absence. He said he had a family emergency.

Giants running back Brandon Jacobs said he spoke to Burress on the phone after the game.

"I called him and made a few jokes about the situation and his laugh is what I wanted to hear," Jacobs said, according to Newsday. "If he didn't laugh I knew he was going to be down, which he shouldn't be down. It's a mistake that happened, something that shouldn't have happened and that's that."

As a Giants fan, this story hits pretty hard to me.

Burress is one of the best receivers in the league, and is a game-changer. A huge factor to our good offense. Yes, I think we can still win at the highest without him, but our team is obviously better with him active. The team is pretty good at blocking out adversity and distractions, in order to play football.

I don't know the limits to this incident. His injuries seem to be minor, which is a plus. But the legal side of this may really affect his playing career. If guilty of chargers, Burress could spend many years in jail. I think that the best thing for the Giants to do now is suspend Burress or put him on IR, until further information is gathered. I hope that he can spend the rest of his career with the Giants, but it was a stupid mistake that he never should have made. I also hope that Pierce is unaffected by this, because he didn't play a major role, and is the mind of our defense.

Athletes carrying weapons is a debatable topic, and they should have the right to, for protection. But the law is the law, and Burress clearly messed up. His gun license wasn't valid in New York State, and he is not above the law. I'm sure his intent and motives were positive, but he shouldn't have done something so mindless. I hope that he is tried fairly, but not harshly, and that he can return to the Giants as soon as he can.

Yes, I was shocked to hear this news as well. I was relieved to find out that he was alright, but I really couldn't understand why it happened. He shouldn't have been at that club, at that time, with that weapon. It was a stupid decision, executed in a horrible way. At least nobody innocent was shot, because then it would've taken a life, and Burress would have been in real deep s**t. I say if the place is to dangerous and insecure that you need a weapon, then just don't go in the first place. With all the money he makes, why not just hire a few bodyguards?

The Giants should still thrive on the football field without Burress, but it definitely will be a bit tougher in his absence.

Tuesday

Plaxico Burress arrived at Giants Stadium on Tuesday, facing the possibility that his career with the Super Bowl champions could be over and he could land in jail after accidentally shooting himself in the thigh at a nightclub.

The star New York Giants receiver drove up to the stadium tunnel, one day after he was charged with illegal gun possession. Burress was required to report Tuesday because he is on the active roster and injured.

A few hours after Burress arrived, Giants general manager Jerry Reese said outside the stadium there was "nothing to report right now." Asked if something might happen later, he told reporters: "If something is decided by the end of the day, you'll be the first to know."

Burress shot himself in the right thigh at a Manhattan nightclub over the weekend in a case that has angered the mayor of New York.

Police were searching for more answers from teammate Antonio Pierce and the hospital that treated Burress. Pierce was with Burress at the nightclub, and police want to know what the linebacker did moments after the shooting and whether he helped cover up what happened.

Pierce is planning to meet personally with members of the district attorney's office "in the near future," according to his lawyer, Michael Bachner.

Bachner said he hasn't been notified that Pierce will be charged with any crime related to the case.

"Mr. Pierce, given the extraordinary circumstances of that evening, acted responsibly in trying to save what could have been the life of a friend," Bachner said.

Asked if commissioner Roger Goodell was planning on meeting with Burress or Pierce, NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said: "This is an active law enforcement investigation and our focus is on cooperating with the NYPD."

Police expressed frustration with the NFL and Giants officials, saying they were promised that Pierce would appear Monday at a police precinct where Burress appeared before heading to court. But he didn't show.

"It was a universe of silence after this shooting," New York Police Department spokesman Paul Browne said.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell talked to New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Monday, telling the mayor the NFL is helping the investigation.

"He reiterated our pledge to fully cooperate," Aiello said, according to The New York Times. "And he expressed his expectation that players would be held accountable. He told the mayor, 'Let us know how we can help.'"

The case drew the wrath of Bloomberg, who said it would be an outrage "if we didn't prosecute to the fullest extent of the law" and lashed out at the hospital that treated Burress for allegedly failing to report the shooting to the authorities.

New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center said officials "take this very seriously, and are conducting a thorough investigation into why this gunshot wound was not reported to the police department in a timely fashion."

Myrna A. Manners, the hospital's vice president for public affairs, told The New York Times that a person responsible for not reporting the gunshot wound had been suspended.

According to the New York Post, hospital personnel recognized Burress, despite his checking in under a fake name -- Harris Smith. Burress also told officials there he'd been shot at an Applebee's restaurant, the Post reported, citing unnamed sources.

Bloomberg spoke out again Tuesday about the case, saying he talked to Giants owner John Mara and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. He told them that the law says "you see something, you gotta call the cops. That's the thing you should do."

Bloomberg also said the state should consider revoking the liquor license of the nightclub for letting Burress enter with a gun.

The developments came just 10 months after Burress made the winning catch in the Super Bowl. But on Monday, he was hauled out of a police precinct in handcuffs facing two weapons charges.

Burress posted $100,000 bail and was told by the judge that his next appearance won't be until March 31. In the meantime, the Giants and the NFL will have to make a decision about what to do with the troublesome wide receiver.

Burress did not say anything in court Monday and did not make a statement to police when booked at a midtown precinct. His lawyer stressed that Burress is innocent until proved guilty and denied Burress took part in any cover-up.

"He is standing tall. He is a mature adult," said Benjamin Brafman, his defense lawyer. "I think any professional athlete in this situation would be concerned."

Burress shot himself in the right thigh in the VIP section of the Latin Quarter nightclub about 1 a.m. Saturday, police said. He did not have a permit to carry a handgun in New York.

A witness reported hearing a popping sound before Burress' legs began to shake, according to a criminal complaint. It said the person saw a bloody pistol fall out of his pant leg and land on the floor before Burress said, "Take me to a hospital."

Burress was charged with two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, which could result in a prison sentence of 3½ years to 15 years if he is convicted.

Originally, police said that running back Derrick Ward was with Burress and Pierce at the club, relying on information given to them from security guards at the club. But police said later it was unclear if Ward was at the club, and the running back strongly denied he was.

Ward's agent, Peter Schaffer, said Ward is no longer a person of interest to the NYPD, the Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J. reported.

Police said that the Giants have sent a member of their medical staff to the precinct who may be able to shed some light on what transpired the night of the shooting, and presumably to relay Pierce's version of events.

Pierce declined to provide specifics about the incident Monday during a radio interview, but said that many facts of the case have been "misconstrued" and "distorted." He said he has hired an attorney but that he doesn't see himself being arrested.

"Today has been a headache and that's about all I can say," he told WFAN.

The Giants released a statement disputing the police's version of their involvement.

"We are working closely with the police and NFL Security," it said. "In the early hours of Saturday morning, as we started to get a sense of what we were dealing with, we did, in fact, notify NFL Security, which then contacted the police."

The NFL released a similarly worded statement.

The Giants have not decided what to do with Burress, who was suspended for a game and fined for missing a team meeting in September. New York could suspend him again or deactivate him for Sunday's home game against the Eagles. The Giants could go as far as releasing Burress, but that would put a strain on the team's salary cap next season.

"We're dealing with that," coach Tom Coughlin said during a conference call Monday. "Today we had some discussions and those discussions will be ongoing."

Coughlin would not speculate on what the team would do if Burress showed for practice Wednesday.

Aiello also said in a statement the league was cooperating. "In addition, it will be reviewed under our league policies," he said.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.