Vick faces several charges - Falcons quarterback is accused of violating federal laws over staging of dogfights. Indictment alleges the grisly treatment of animals.

The Atlanta Falcons quarterback -- the league's second-highest paid player -- on Tuesday was indicted by a federal grand jury on multiple charges related to illegal dogfighting.

Vick, 27, and three others are accused of violating federal laws against staging dogfights, gambling and engaging in unlawful activities across state lines. The 18-page indictment includes graphic details of Vick and others running Bad Newz Kennels, arranging fights with purses worth thousands of dollars and executing dogs that didn't perform well by methods such as hanging, drowning, electrocuting, shooting and "slamming at least one dog's body to the ground."

The indictment, the product of an investigation focusing on a property Vick owns in Surry, Va., is a major test of NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell's new conduct policy.

In question: After suspending arrest-prone players Adam "Pacman" Jones, Chris Henry and Tank Johnson for all or part of the 2007 season -- and saying he would not necessarily wait for the courts to dole out punishment -- how will the new commissioner react to a scandal involving a superstar?

"This clearly ratchets up the Goodell Test to a whole new level," said Paul Swangard, managing director of the University of Oregon's Warsaw Sports Marketing Center. "It will define the level of legitimacy his policies will have moving forward."

If convicted, Vick and the others -- Purnell A. Peace, 35, of Virginia Beach, Quanis L. Phillips, 28, of Atlanta, and Tony Taylor, 34, of Hampton, Va. -- could face up to six years in prison, $350,000 in fines, plus restitution.

A spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office said Vick would not be arrested but would be ordered to appear in district court in Richmond, Va., for a hearing. The date of that hearing could be set as early as today.

Telephone and e-mail messages left for Vick's attorney, Larry Woodward, were not immediately returned. The Falcons issued a statement saying the Vick situation "has been troubling to many people, including our fans, during the last few months," and that "we are disappointed that one of our players -- and therefore the Falcons -- is being presented to the public in a negative way, and we apologize to our fans and the community for that."