[ArthurS]

Former NBA star Kemp charged with drug possession

April 29, 2005
SEATTLE (AP) -- Former Seattle SuperSonics forward Shawn Kemp was charged Friday with one count of possession of more than 40 grams of marijuana.

King County prosecutors said Kemp and Gavin Lamar Jones were arrested about 1 a.m. on April 4 in the Seattle suburb of Shoreline, after a county sheriff's deputy noticed a large truck belonging to Kemp sitting behind a closed car wash.

According to court papers, when the deputy approached the truck, the driver's door was open and a strong smell of marijuana was coming from inside the vehicle. Kemp initially said the pair had smoked marijuana earlier and there was none in the vehicle, but later told the deputy there was ``a bag full,'' in the truck.

Deputies searched the truck and found a black leather bag containing a loaded 9mm handgun registered to Kemp and about 1.2 grams of cocaine. Jones claimed the bag was his and that he had owned the gun for a couple of years, but did not know the make or model of the weapon.

An arraignment date in Seattle District Court will be set next week. The county prosecutor's office said the pair will have three choices when arraigned: plead guilty to a gross misdemeanor, ask for a trial on a felony drug charge in King County Superior Court, or enter a drug court program that could result in the charges being dismissed.

Kemp, a five-time All-Star, was drafted by the Sonics in 1989 and played for Seattle until 1997, when he was traded to Cleveland in a three-way deal that brought Vin Baker to Seattle from Milwaukee.

Kemp also played for Portland and Orlando before ending his career in 2003.

He appeared in 78 NBA playoff games, leading the Sonics with 23.3 points and 10 rebounds per game in the 1996 NBA Finals against the Chicago Bulls.

Stupid Dumbass