- Verizon Center where Arenas brought the guns
By Allan Lengel
ticklethewire.com
WASHINGTON — It ended with a whimper rather than a loud bang, which is probably a good thing.
Troubled NBA Wizards star Gilbert Arenas pleaded guilty Friday in D.C. Superior Court to a felony count of carrying a pistol without a license.
Sentencing is set for March 6. And though he could face six to 24 months in jail, he’s likely to get probation. Arenas has been suspended indefinitely from the team he had been expected to help improve this year.
“Playing with firearms is no joke,” U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips, who is a known Wizards fan, said in a statement. “Today’s guilty plea to a felony county of carrying a pistol without a license reflects the seriousness and grave risk of such conduct.”
Authorities say Arenas brought four guns to the Verizon Center in December. On Dec. 21, he placed the firearms on the chair of a teammate he’d been beefing with, along with a note — that was supposedly in jest — that said “Pick 1”.
Arenas’ attorney Kenneth Wainstein, a former U.S. Attorney who was Channing Phillips’ boss, issued a statement:
“Earlier this afternoon, Gilbert Arenas appeared before the Honorable Robert E. Morin of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia and pled guilty to a charge of carrying a pistol in the District of Columbia without a license. He accepted full responsibility for his actions, acknowledged that those actions were wrong and against the law, and has apologized to all who have been affected by his conduct. Mr. Arenas appreciates the professionalism of the authorities handling this matter.”
