Oh, give us all a break! Babineaux’s lawyer wants to claim this guy was turning the dog around in circles to calm him down!

Its time for good men to stand up and say, “Real men don’t abuse animals!”

And catch the last line in the article where the NFL official suggests that Babineaux donate money next season for every tackle he makes! Is this guy kidding or just insanely stupid?! Now you know I don’t encourage anyone to yell “poopyhead” when discussing other people but COME ON! Make a donation? This lug didn’t walk out of a convenience store with a stolen pack of gum. He killed another creature and could very easily have killed his girlfriend! And for that you want to have him “make a donation!?” The only way I would go for that is if the donation includes his whole salary, without worrying about tackles. Tell big, bad Babineaux he can work for the whole season to benefit homeless and abused pets! How about that deal?

Thanks to the New York Times for this article that keeps the spotlight on this heinous crime!

Death of a Dog May Be Latest Mess for N.F.L.

By JUDY BATTISTA

Perhaps after the autopsy report is released this week, the police will have a better idea whether Jonathan Babineaux, a defensive tackle who just finished his second season with the Atlanta Falcons, represents the latest — and oddest — of National Football League miscreants: dog killer.

A dog belonging to Babineaux’s live-in girlfriend died last week, and Babineaux was charged with felony animal cruelty. The dog, Kilo, was a 1 ½-year-old pit bull mix.

The N.F.L. was already grappling with a particularly violent off-season. One player, Denver’s Darrent Williams, was shot to death after leaving a nightclub following a party on New Year’s Eve. Another, Tennessee’s Pacman Jones, was involved in a melee at a Las Vegas strip club during the N.B.A.’s All-Star weekend that led to three people being shot.

The league and representatives of its players union met last week to discuss how to toughen the personal conduct policy, which allows the commissioner to mete out punishment for off-the-field events.

But amid the shootings and the bar brawls, Babineaux’s case — the police have said the dog died of blunt force trauma to the head — has touched a particular nerve, prompting dozens of e-mail messages and calls of outrage to the Atlanta office of the Humane Society and to the national headquarters of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.

PETA has sent a letter to Commissioner Roger Goodell asking that Babineaux be suspended for a year if he is found guilty. It has also asked that the Falcons suspend Babineaux, 25, if the case is not resolved by the start of the season, and that the team cut him if he is found guilty.

“It’s the kind of thing people can’t identify with,” said Dan Shannon, the manager of youth outreach and programs at PETA’s Virginia headquarters. “You just can’t think there is any way you’d kill a dog.”

Babineaux and his girlfriend, Blair Anderson, argued last Sunday, and Anderson was at the movies when Babineaux called to tell her she should come home to check on the dog, according to the police.

When she got there, the dog was in “severe physical distress,” the police said. Kilo vomited blood in the car as Anderson drove to the Animal Emergency Center in Lawrenceville, Ga. He was pronounced dead at the hospital. Doctors called the police.

At the time, Babineaux told the police he had had physical contact with the dog but nothing that would have caused its death. The police said Babineaux’s explanation was inconsistent with the physical evidence, and he was arrested.

Since then, an Atlanta television station has reported — and a league official has confirmed — that Babineaux said he was following the advice of a dog trainer recommended by his veterinarian to try to train the dog not to be aggressive. And in turning the dog repeatedly in a circle until it became disoriented, the dog accidentally smacked its head against the wall.

“I don’t know of any trainer that would offer that kind of advice,” said Richard Rice, the state program manager in the Atlanta office of the Humane Society of the United States.

Babineaux’s lawyer, Pat McDonough, would not confirm the television station’s account. But he said Babineaux had been falsely accused.

“He’s done absolutely nothing wrong,” McDonough said in a telephone interview last night. “I’m confident people are going to realize they are jumping to conclusions based on wrong information.”

The autopsy is expected to show whether a weapon was used to kill Kilo. If one was, that would surprise the Falcons, who were shocked by Babineaux’s arrest because he is well regarded by the franchise. He is said to be distraught about the case.

The N.F.L. will handle the case under the much discussed personal conduct policy, which would allow Goodell to fine or suspend Babineaux. The Falcons spokesman Reggie Roberts said the team would wait until the case was complete before deciding Babineaux’s fate, although the Falcons’ owner, Arthur Blank, is known for his concern about behavior and image issues. Earlier this off-season, Atlanta quarterback Michael Vick had a water bottle with a secret compartment seized at the Miami airport.

Roberts said of Blank, “Any time any of our guys makes the papers in a negative light, he’s not happy.”

One league official who is not authorized to speak publicly for the team said Babineaux would not be released. One possible benefit of the dog’s death, however it happened, is that the Falcons will most likely recommend that Babineaux donate money for each tackle he makes next season to the Humane Society.