Buccaneers cornerback Aqib Talib was officially indicted Friday morning on felony charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

From Rotoworld.com:

The next step is to schedule hearings then a trial, where Talib could face 2-20 years in prison if convicted of firing multiple shots at his sister’s boyfriend. If he’s found not guilty, it’s not hard to imagine coach Raheem Morris going to bat for him in the Bucs front office. Considering his history, Talib will face NFL discipline regardless of the outcome.

The key here is that an indictment doesn’t mean Talib is guilty of any crime. It just means that there has been an official charge made and now both sides will build a case.

As I wrote yesterday, the league can’t punish players during the lockout but Roger Goodell is still keeping tabs on legal situations like Talib’s. The cornerback obviously has a much bigger issue on his plate than what kind of punishment Goodell is going to dole out, but it’s worth noting that he’ll probably be disciplined once his trial wraps up.

It’ll be interesting to see if he’ll serve much – if any – jail time. Usually when there’s a time frame of X amount of months/years an athlete is facing in prison (which is 2-20 years in Talib’s case), they usually wind up spending anywhere from zero to about half a second behind bars. Assuming he’s guilty of breaking the law, I doubt Talib’s situation will be any different but I could be wrong.

The St. Petersburg Times is reporting that Buccaneers cornerback Aqib Talib will be indicted by a Dallas grand jury on felony charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

However, the indictment is not expected to officially be reported until Friday. Earlier this week, an examining trial determined there was enough evidence in the shooting case involving Talib to be heard by the grand jury Wednesday.

Talib is charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, a second degree felony which carries a punishment of 2-20 years in prison, for his role in a March 21 shooting in Garland, Texas.

Police say Talib attempted to pistol whip and later fired gunshots at his sister’s boyfriend, Shannon Billings. Nobody was injured. Talib’s mother, Okolo, also faces similar charges.

While the league can’t dole out punishment during the lockout, Roger Goodell is said to be documenting players’ legal issues and will act accordingly once the labor dispute ends. That said, Talib’s issues go far beyond his playing career or the NFL. After all, the guy is facing 20 years in prison.

Of course, I have a hard time believing that Talib will serve a long stint behind bars. So many athletes in various sports (especially the NFL) have faced jail time before, only to get off with a slap on the wrist. I’m not saying it’s right. But if history is any indication, I doubt Talib will be put away for very long, if at all.

Besides, his defense team may have a strong case for self-defense since he acted on behalf of his sister, who was allegedly attacked by her boyfriend before Talib, uh, stepped in. I’m not a lawyer so excuse my ignorance here, but it would seem like Talib’s defense team could get him out of any real jail time. (Again, I’m not rooting for or against Talib going to jail. If he broke any laws, then he deserves to pay the time.)

Either way, the young cornerback is in some serious trouble and his career is in jeopardy.

Bucs’ head coach Raheem Morris refuted a St. Petersburg Times report that the team has already decided to move on from troubled cornerback Aqib Talib.

“Just to say that we’ve come out and made a decision about what’s going to happen with Aqib Talib’s future is completely false and bad information,” Morris said.

“The NFL has a discipline policy for our players that is also part of the collective bargaining agreement. Discipline throughout the league and off-the-field issues are always handled through the league office,” Morris said. “There are extra things internally that we do. We might fine people, we may take money, we may sit you out of practice, we may sit you out of games, we may not allow you to participate in certain things.

“The public stuff and the public knowledge is always handed down by the NFL, usually. Right now, the guy has not been judged. Once he gets judged, I’m sure the NFL, or whatever happens there, will step into play. Then we will step into play also.”

This is smart on Morris’ part. You don’t want to even suggest that you’re going to cut a guy that hasn’t been proven guilty of anything (even though the odds are clearly stacked against Talib). If Morris and the Bucs did, they would be inviting the media and fans to scrutinize their decision-making.

If or when Talib is found guilty and the NFL makes a decision on his future, then Morris and the Bucs can get involved. Until then, Morris has it right: We (Bucs) haven’t made a decision about anything regarding Aqib Talib.

According to the St. Petersburg Times, the Bucs are expected to release troubled cornerback Aqib Talib, who is currently being investigated for a shooting dating back to last month.

Barring a last-minute change of heart — or perhaps his exoneration — the Bucs are expected to release troubled CB Aqib Talib.

Only the lockout, which prevents teams from making transactions, has prevented Tampa Bay from already cutting ties with its 2008 first-round draft pick.

As the paper points out, Talib was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in a March 21 shooting in Texas, which is a second-degree felony punishable by two to 20 years in prison. Police say the cornerback fired a gun at his sister’s 40-year-old boyfriend, although Talib has denied the accusation via his attorneys.

Talib has also been involved in several other off-field incidents, including fighting a teammate at the NFL rookie symposium. In 2009, he swung a helmet at offensive tackle Donald Penn during an argument and inadvertently struck cornerback Torrie Cox, which caused a gash. In 2010, Talib agreed to a deal with prosecutors to resolve a battery charge after he was accused of striking a St. Petersburg car driver. The incident caused NFL commissioner Roger Goodell to take action, suspending the cornerback for the first game of the regular season.

Even though the St. Petersburg Times is a reputable source, it’s important to allow the situation to play out. Often times a report like this will come out and the team will deny it the very next day (or several hours later in some cases). I have no doubt that the Bucs are considering releasing Talib, but he’s one of few shutdown corners in the league and he’s only 25. If he’s exonerated or given probation (which is likely considering he’s an athlete and the same laws don’t seem to apply to athletes as they do to regular folk), then there’s reason to believe that Tampa will keep him around.

But if they do decide to cut bait and move on, it would be hard to blame their rationale.

Texas police have issued felony warrants for the arrests of Bucs’ cornerback Aqib Talib and his mother, Okolo “Momma Be Packin’ Heat” Talib. (I’m kidding – that’s not her real nickname. I actually don’t know what her real nickname is. Probably “O” or something.)

According to the St. Petersburg Times, Talib could face five to 20 years in prison after he turns himself in for the second-degree felony charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Talib’s mother was also charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and surrendered to police on Tuesday. The warrants stem from an incident that occurred on March 21 in which Talib allegedly opened fire on his sister’s boyfriend outside her home in Texas.

As I wrote yesterday when this news first broke, it sounds like Talib was trying to defend his family. He and his mother do have the right to bear arms (assuming the weapons were registered, of course) and if he felt that his life or the lives of those around him were in danger then maybe he should have fired the gun. Who knows? I wasn’t there and therefore can’t pass judgment.

That said, Talib is fortunate that he didn’t kill an innocent bystander by firing the weapon while trying to hit his sister’s boyfriend. He may wind up going to jail a la Michael Vick and Plaxico Burress because he didn’t think before he reacted. (Again though, I wasn’t there so I’m just basing everything off the published reports.)

We’ll see how everything plays out but this kid is in some serious trouble. Whether or not he broke any laws and will face punishment in court is uncertain at this point. But the NFL will monitor the situation and if he is charged, Talib can expect a suspension.