Damon Arnette, Guilty on Gun Charges, Claims Cowboys in Contract Talks: UPDATE
FRISCO - Damon Arnette on Monday resolved a felony gun case by pleading guilty ... and then by claiming he was about to board a flight to DFW to meet with the Dallas Cowboys about signing with the NFL team.
“If I’m blessed enough to get another chance in the NFL, then I’m going to kill that,” Arnette told reporters after the Clark County District Court in Las Vegas ordered him to never again involve himself with firearms.
Arnette's choice of words there is unfortunate, given that the former first-round draft pick by the Las Vegas Raiders in 2020 was in trouble for assault and possessing a gun “in a threatening manner” at a Las Vegas Strip hotel valet stand in January 2022. Arnette was indicted last May after testimony that he held a .45-caliber handgun and threatened two hotel valets during an argument about a parking receipt at the Park MGM. There are also previous allegations involving Arnette and his involvement guns.
He also faced drug charges as when Las Vegas police stopped him and arrested him on suspicion of drug and gun offenses, officers said that along with finding a gun in the driver’s side door there were substances believed to be cocaine. A passenger in Arnette's car also was arrested with a handgun.
Additionally, an NFL source tells CowboysSI.com that he "has no knowledge'' of a scheduled negotiation between Arnette and any NFL team ... which we take as a polite denial of an outrageous claim.
“I’ve learned a lot. I’m remorseful about everything,” the 26-year-old Arnette told reporters. “I appreciate and respect another opportunity. I’m a better man than I was.”
By admitting guilt, the charges were reduced to misdemeanors, meaning Arnette avoids trial on charges of assault with a deadly weapon and carrying a concealed firearm, felonies that combined carry the possibility of up to 10 years in state prison. Arnette now faces a year in jail if he violates the "no-guns'' mandate.
Arnette's seemed to imply that he was in a hurry to meet with Cowboys officials as he said he had an airline flight booked to Dallas to discuss a contract. Most Cowboys officials are not present at The Star as of Monday, as they are at training camp in Oxnard, California with a team featuring a starring cornerback tandem of Trevon Diggs and Stephon Gilmore. But the team will indeed be back in DFW later this week as the Cowboys play the preseason opener against Jacksonville on Saturday at AT&T Stadium.
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