Loaded gun tossed over railing

July 01, 2009

A loaded .380-caliber handgun was tossed over a railing Tuesday afternoon at 311 N. Jonathan St. after officers detained a man in a suspected drug incident, according to Washington County District Court records.

Leroy Benjamin Harris, 31, no fixed address, was charged with possession of marijuana, possession of paraphernalia and handgun on person, according to court records.

Harris was being held in the Washington County Detention Center Wednesday night on $20,000 bond, a jail spokesman said.

Harris was charged after Hagerstown Police Department Sgt. J. Robison was conducting surveillance of the 300 block of North Jonathan Street using cameras installed in the block, according to court records.

Robison said in a complaint he saw Harris empty the contents of a cigar and start to put suspected marijuana in it.

Robison said he called for several units to move in and contact Harris, who put the "blunt" in his left pocket, according to court records.

After Harris was escorted to a cruiser for a search, an officer saw Harris reach into a back pocket and remove a gun, according to court records.

The officer yelled "gun" to the officers, at which time Harris tossed the gun over the railing, according to court records. Another officer retrieved the gun and discovered it was a loaded Cobra .380-caliber handgun with six rounds in the magazine and one in the chamber, according to court records.

Robison said he conducted a check of Harris' background and discovered Harris pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine on May 12, 2003, according to court records.

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