Police Conduct Raid on Michael Vick Home, Find Evidence of Dog Fighting

Police conducting a drug search found dozens of dogs, including some that were injured, at a home owned by Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick Thursday and arrested one of his relatives after finding items associated with dog fighting.

According to Virginia State Police, more than 60 dogs were found in three buildings at the residence, occupied by 26-year-old Davon Boddie. Some of the dogs allegedly were malnourished, scarred or injured.

Vick owns the property but does not live there and was not present at the time of the investigation; which was started as the result of Boddie being arrested April 20 outside a nightclub and being charged with distribution of marijuana and possession with intent to distribute.

The arrest is one of several embarrassing incidents involving Vick; the Falcon's top draft pick in 2001.

In 2005, the 3-time Pro Bowler was sued by a woman who claimed she had contracted genital herpes from Vick and he had not informed her he had the virus. According to the civil complaint, he received treatment for the disease by visiting clinics under the alias Ron Mexico. The claim caused fans to order Vick's jersey (number 7) with the last name Mexico and NFLshop.com was forced to implement a ban on that combination of name and number.

In 2006, Vick was fined $10,000 by the NFL and agreed to give $10,000 to charity after he made an obscene gesture at fans following a loss to the New Orleans Saints at the Georgia Dome. More recently, he was taken into custody at the Miami International Airport after inspectors found a water bottle with a secret compartment. After weeks of silence, Vick later claimed the compartment was meant to hide his jewelry.

This latest incident has created some problems for the Falcons.

The Humane Society of the United States made a statement following the arrest that they have heard reports about Vick being involved in organized dog fighting; something that is illegal in 48 states and the arrest seems to provide evidence of this. The Animal Rights Group, PETA, has reportedly asked the Falcons to suspend Vick and kick him off the team if the evidence from the ongoing investigation shows the dogs were used in organized fights. The Falcons traded Vick's top backup, Matt Schaub to the Houston Texans earlier this month.

Neither Vick nor any of his representatives have commented on the issue and the Falcons are refusing to comment until an investigation has been completed.

If Vick is involved, it will present one of the first tests of the NFL's new Personal Conduct Policy. Commissioner Roger Goodell has threatened to suspend players for repeated run ins with the law and penalize the teams they play for. Two players have already been suspended as part of that policy.