The Washington Wizards’ guard Gilbert Arenas avoided jail time for bringing guns to the Verizon Center and threatening teammate Javaris Crittenton following a dispute over a card-game debt that did not involve guaranteed loans. According to the Washington Post, Arenas and his defense attorneys have claimed that it was merely “a prank gone wrong,” while the prosecution calls Gilbert Arenas’ “self-serving, ever-evolving” story a thin attempt to cover a pattern of bullying and “thuggish” intimidation. The D.C. Superior Court Judge Robert Morininitially sentenced “Agent Zero” to 18 months in jail; however, that part of the sentence was suspended. In Morin’s mind, all that Gilbert Arenas owes the justice system is $ 5,000 donation to a crime victim’s fund, 400 hours of community service, 30 days in a halfway house, and two years probation.
Gilbert Arenas earns $ 16.2 million per season
So of course the $ 5,000 donation is appallingly low. Those crime victims would do just as well with some payday loans. But what of the lack of jail time, never-mind that he’ll likely remain in the NBA, if not with the Washington Wizards? Any normal person who brings a gun to work would get jail time and be fired, even if it were unloaded as Gilbert Arenas says his guns were.The practical joke defense wouldn’t hold water. Not serving in jail is effrontery to justice, whether Arenas is a joker who doesn’t know when to stop or is a common gang-banger with more money than sense.
Did Judge Morin request Wizards season tickets? Unclear
What he did say, according to the Post, is that he “weighed several factors in issuing his sentence.” First of all, the firearms involved were registered in Virginia. The probation bell might have been rung since this occurred in D.C..Second, there was no way to demonstrate the guns were loaded and Arenas has no documented history of violence. Start up Lee Greenwood’s “Proud to Be an American!”
Before Gilbert Arenas already faced gun charges.
In 2003, while exiting the Golden State Warriors as a free agent, Arenas was arrested outside of San Francisco when police spotted a gun in his car during a traffic stop.While being registered in Arizona, it was not registered in California. After pleading no contest to illegal gun possession, “Agent Zero” served two years probation.
