Former New York Giants star Plaxico Burress recieved five years of probation for failing to pay his 2013 taxes.
TRENTON -- The criminal case of former NFL start Plaxico Burress - who failed to pay thousands in state income taxes - came to an end Friday in a Mercer County courtroom.
Burress will need to repay the money or face nearly a year of jail time.
Burress, 38, the former receiver for the Giants, Jets and Steelers, appeared in court for a sentencing Friday after he pleaded guilty in December to tax evasion.
"I'm just trying to keep my ducks in a row," Burress told Superior Court Judge Pedro Jimenez.
Jimenez sentenced Burress to five years probation. In that time Burress will have to pay off his fines or face a year of jail time at the end of the probation.
It was the same sentence that Burress agreed to in December when he pleaded guilty to failure to pay the $47,903 of taxes on his $1 million income in 2013.
Prosecutors have said that Burress filed his 2013 tax returns in 2014 but that the electronic payment did not go through. When the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services reached out to Burress they did not receive a reply, authorities have said.
Jimenez based Burress' sentencing largely on his history.
Burress had a misdemeanor and a weapons charge on his record, to which he pleaded guilty. The weapons charge was linked to a 2009 incident when he accidentally shot himself at a Manhattan nightclub.
Despite the conviction Jimenez said in court Friday that Burress had led a largely, "law abiding life," before issuing the probation sentence.
Burress must keep and maintain a job while paying off his fines.
Anna Merriman may be reached at amerriman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @anna_merriman Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook.