Man gets prison on gun charge

HAGERSTOWN — The second of three men charged last year after a traffic stop with carrying loaded handguns pleaded guilty Monday in Washington County Circuit Court to carrying a handgun without a permit and was sentenced to a year in jail.

Andre Rafael Stanton, 25, of Frederick, Md., was given a three-year state prison sentence with two years suspended and 18 months of supervised probation by Judge Daniel P. Dwyer. Stanton could be released to home detention after 30 days in jail, Dwyer said.

“Where were these guys coming from, or where were they going?” is the question that has never been answered, Assistant State’s Attorney Gina Cirincion told Dwyer.

On Dec. 18, 2010, a Hagerstown police officer using a license plate reader pulled over a Cadillac in front of The Maryland Theatre, charging documents said. A police dog alerted for the possible presence of drugs, and police asked the four men in the car to get out.

Trevin T. Harris, 21, of Hagerstown, ran from police and was caught after a brief chase, charging documents said. Harris, who was 20 at the time, told an officer “I should have shot it out with you guys,” the documents said.

In May, Harris pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm by a minor and was sentenced to 18 months in jail, court records said.

“This situation was fraught with danger,” Dwyer told Stanton.

The state was seeking a three-year prison sentence, but defense attorney Mary Drawbaugh argued for a lesser sentence, noting that Stanton had no criminal record prior to sustaining a head injury a few years ago. Three other firearms violations were dismissed as part of Stanton’s plea, court records said.

A third man, Carl Anthony Blackwood, 24, of Hagerstown, also was charged with carrying a loaded gun and is scheduled to be in court next moth, Cirincion said. Blackwood also was charged with being a felon in possession of a handgun, court records said.

A fourth man, the driver of the vehicle, did not have a firearm, Cirincion told Dwyer.