James Bouknight appeared to have a handgun in his lap when he was arrested for driving while intoxicated over the weekend.
In a photo of the arrest obtained by TMZ Sports, the Charlotte Hornets guard could be seen passed out while he is holding a Glock handgun in his lap before officers arrested him.
The 22-year-old Bouknight was found in his vehicle around 1 a.m. in a parking garage, according to a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police report obtained by Kallie Cox and Roderick Boone of the Charlotte Observer.
“Police radio communications, obtained from Broadcastify, indicate first responders from Medic, Charlotte Fire and CMPD attempted to rouse Bouknight and have him open the locked car,” Cox and Boone wrote.
North Carolina has an open carry policy “in cases where the gun is considered legal and the person is not banned from having a firearm.”
Bouknight was the owner of the car and had a pending concealed carry permit when they ran the tags and information on the vehicle. Bouknight was released from custody after posting a $2,500 bond. He hasn’t been charged with any crime related to carrying a weapon.
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He has court appearances scheduled throughout the rest of this year as he has been cited for traffic violations three times within the past year, including speeding and reckless driving charges in November 2021 and February.
Bouknight was the No. 11 overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft by the Hornets. He appeared in 31 games off the bench as a rookie.
