Former Clemson University football standout Da’Quan Bowers is facing jail time after being arrested earlier this week at LaGuardia Airport. Bowers had a .40 caliber Smith and Wesson handgun in his carry-on luggage shortly before he was scheduled to board a flight to Raleigh, North Carolina.
The 6-foot-4, 277-pound defensive end – who just finished his second season with the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers – is currently free on $10,000 bond after being charged with the same criminal weapon possession statute that landed Pittsburgh Steelers’ wide receiver Plaxico Burress in jail for twenty months in 2009.
Bowers, 22, did not attempt to board the plane with his gun. In fact he alerted airport personnel to the fact that he was carrying the weapon before he even attempted to enter a security checkpoint.
And he’s facing jail time for that? Please …
Don’t get us wrong … there’s absolutely no good reason to pack a gun in your carry-on bag prior to boarding a commercial flight. What was Bowers thinking? We have no idea: We went to USC, not Clemson. But regardless of Bowers’ lack of foresight, is there anything about this story which justifies him going to jail for three-and-a-half years (which is the “mandatory minimum” for this charge)?
Of course not …
Government is out of control in this country – waging a non-stop war against our Second Amendment rights – and Da’Quan Bowers is the latest victim of its ever-escalating ridiculousness. Seriously … no matter how dumb you think it was for Bowers to enter an airport with a gun in his carry-on (answer: very), he did the right thing in this situation by telling someone before he reached security screening.
He was responsible, in other words … far more responsible than the federal government is with its guns, we’d like to point out.
Da’Quan Bowers shouldn’t spend an hour in jail for this. No one should. In fact it is nonsense prosecutions like this one which prompt Second Amendment advocates like us to continue to call for civil disobedience with respect to all of our nation’s unconstitutional anti-gun laws.
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26 comments
Dabo always told us Da’Quan ‘TERRORIZED’ backfields…i say THROW THE BOOK AT HIM…
PS: Another sad chapter for this kid. He was No. 1 overall out of HS and really was not developed at a quality level at Clemson and the pathetioc ACC…and that caused him to slip and lose millions…Now he faces criminal charges…
He should be a lesson about wasting your talent w/ Dabo, the ACC and Clemson…
This is a case of Felony Stupidity…more than anything else…but in NYC having a gun is worse than murder….
PS: He could use his Clemson education as a defense and an excuse…
Don’t want to burst your bubble, champ. But he slipped because his knee was not thought to be sound. He was a “Top 10” pick until then. The drop had nothing to do with Clemson, Dabo, nor the ACC.
Now, that being said, Daquan needs to use a little more judgment in his personal life and travels: 1) Stay out of places if you need a gun for safety, and 2) Pay attention to gun laws.
I’d be very surprised if we don’t see the same with USUC’s favorite horror story. I doubt if it will blamed on Spurcock, USUC, or the SEC.
That’s Bull-sheet, Frank. Da Quan was a bigtime underacheiver at Clemson.
The manufactured story about his knee came out after the failed to be developed and meet expectations.
You’re just trying to save face for the scew-up job Dabo and Clemson did on Da’Quan…He never had a “KNEE” problem until that became a convenient excuse for Clemson.
BigT – please go suck another Big D. Dipshit.
I agree, winning National Defensive Player of the year, leading the country in sacks his senior year, consensus all-American, etc……. Clemson sure did waste this talented kid.
Dabo always told us Da’Quan ‘TERRORIZED’ backfields…i say THROW THE BOOK AT HIM…
PS: Another sad chapter for this kid. He was No. 1 overall out of HS and really was not developed at a quality level at Clemson and the pathetioc ACC…and that caused him to slip and lose millions…Now he faces criminal charges…
He should be a lesson about wasting your talent w/ Dabo, the ACC and Clemson…
This is a case of Felony Stupidity…more than anything else…but in NYC having a gun is worse than murder….
PS: He could use his Clemson education as a defense and an excuse…
Don’t want to burst your bubble, champ. But he slipped because his knee was not thought to be sound. He was a “Top 10” pick until then. The drop had nothing to do with Clemson, Dabo, nor the ACC.
Now, that being said, Daquan needs to use a little more judgment in his personal life and travels: 1) Stay out of places if you need a gun for safety, and 2) Pay attention to gun laws.
I’d be very surprised if we don’t see the same with USUC’s favorite horror story. I doubt if it will blamed on Spurcock, USUC, or the SEC.
That’s Bull-sheet, Frank. Da Quan was a bigtime underacheiver at Clemson.
The manufactured story about his knee came out after the failed to be developed and meet expectations.
You’re just trying to save face for the scew-up job Dabo and Clemson did on Da’Quan…He never had a “KNEE” problem until that became a convenient excuse for Clemson.
BigT – please go suck another Big D. Dipshit.
I agree, winning National Defensive Player of the year, leading the country in sacks his senior year, consensus all-American, etc……. Clemson sure did waste this talented kid.
Mandatory minimums are bullshit in general.
would the person who downvoted this care to elaborate on their thoughts? the only thing mandatory mins has ever done is put more people in jail, it hasnt caused any reduction in crime
Mandatory minimums are bullshit in general.
would the person who downvoted this care to elaborate on their thoughts? the only thing mandatory mins has ever done is put more people in jail, it hasnt caused any reduction in crime
Plaxico deserved jail time because he discharged his firearm in a public place, even if it only injured his own dumbass self. He endangered other people by doing that and deserved punishment for it. He also had an expired concealed carry permit, which is also dumb.
I agree that Da’Quan did nothing really terrible, just something incredibly dumb. At best he deserves a fine or to have that particular gun confiscated (as is common procedure with knives, nail clippers, etc.). I don’t think NFL players are a high risk group when it comes to hijacking airplanes. The fact that he notified officials that his gun was in there should garner him some leniency, honestly.
By the way, are you contending that the left is responsible for this shit? So only a liberal would want no one to be armed with a gun in a plane besides maybe an air marshal? Was the TSA created by the Democrats? What does assault rifle bans and magazine limitations have to do with putting a gun in your carry-on luggage? The guy violated a law and even though the reaction may be more than what is necessary, this isn’t some egregious new limitation that has suddenly been thrust upon us by some kind of “gun control war” being waged. It is a law that has been on the books for some time and should have room for leniency in cases like this if it doesn’t.
Your whole “civil disobedience” schtick came out over the outrage of previously existing gun regulations being suggested again with no real danger of actually becoming law, and you won’t follow through with it because even though you like gun rights, you’re not willing to go to jail over it. And if you were, you’d be Exhibit A for gun control advocates anyways.
And no, people shouldn’t be allowed to carry guns onto planes unless properly secured as cargo. The last thing we need is Plaxico shooting himself in a plane.
Plaxico deserved jail time because he discharged his firearm in a public place, even if it only injured his own dumbass self. He endangered other people by doing that and deserved punishment for it. He also had an expired concealed carry permit, which is also dumb.
I agree that Da’Quan did nothing really terrible, just something incredibly dumb. At best he deserves a fine or to have that particular gun confiscated (as is common procedure with knives, nail clippers, etc.). I don’t think NFL players are a high risk group when it comes to hijacking airplanes. The fact that he notified officials that his gun was in there should garner him some leniency, honestly.
By the way, are you contending that the left is responsible for this shit? So only a liberal would want no one to be armed with a gun in a plane besides maybe an air marshal? Was the TSA created by the Democrats? What does assault rifle bans and magazine limitations have to do with putting a gun in your carry-on luggage? The guy violated a law and even though the reaction may be more than what is necessary, this isn’t some egregious new limitation that has suddenly been thrust upon us by some kind of “gun control war” being waged. It is a law that has been on the books for some time and should have room for leniency in cases like this if it doesn’t.
Your whole “civil disobedience” schtick came out over the outrage of previously existing gun regulations being suggested again with no real danger of actually becoming law, and you won’t follow through with it because even though you like gun rights, you’re not willing to go to jail over it. And if you were, you’d be Exhibit A for gun control advocates anyways.
And no, people shouldn’t be allowed to carry guns onto planes unless properly secured as cargo. The last thing we need is Plaxico shooting himself in a plane.
naming my next son,Biff Da’Quan,so he’ll get along with everyone,and of course ,he’ll be quarterback
naming my next son,Biff Da’Quan,so he’ll get along with everyone,and of course ,he’ll be quarterback
Nice try. Glad he told someone that he was packing a gun? How in the hell do you do
that ? “Err, excuse me sir but I have a .40 mm. pistol in my bag along with 4.5 oz. of Gatorade”???
I think the slapping of the forehead and ‘oh my gosh” would be better if ridiculous also.
Nice try. Glad he told someone that he was packing a gun? How in the hell do you do
that ? “Err, excuse me sir but I have a .40 mm. pistol in my bag along with 4.5 oz. of Gatorade”???
I think the slapping of the forehead and ‘oh my gosh” would be better if ridiculous also.
Good to see an Obama voter get busted by an Obama laws. Hope this is just the beginning. If the left realizes they are subject to their god’s punishments, maybe they will ge their heads out their @$$#$ and quit worhiping him….
Good to see an Obama voter get busted by an Obama laws. Hope this is just the beginning. If the left realizes they are subject to their god’s punishments, maybe they will ge their heads out their @$$#$ and quit worhiping him….
in his defense, hes probably used to flying on the bucs private jet and had a mental lapse. if youre flying private you can leave your gun out on the seat next to you
in his defense, hes probably used to flying on the bucs private jet and had a mental lapse. if youre flying private you can leave your gun out on the seat next to you