Former NFL star and Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick was sentenced today in Federal Court by the Honorable Henry E. Hudson on dogfighting charges. In an earlier post, I discussed the re-emergence of judicial discretion in sentencing in Federal court following the landmark Booker decision in 2004. This judicial discretion is evident in the 23 month sentence Michael Vick received today. The prosecutors in this case, after negotiating a plea agreement with Michael Vick, recommended 12-18 months incarceration. However, judge Henry Hudson, who has a reputation for being hard on crime, sentenced Vick today to 23 months in federal prison. Vick was facing up to 5 years in prison for his connection with a dogfighting ring. After Vick apologized to the court and his family, Hudson told him: “You need to apologize to the millions of young people who looked up to you.” “Yes, sir,” Vick answered.