A 24-year-old male is currently one of the top cornerbacks in the NFL. As he enters the 4th year of his rookie contract, he has been selected to 3 Pro Bowls and was named the NFL’s Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2017 - the year he was drafted by the New Orleans Saints.
That 24-year-old male is Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore. His annual salary is $3.8 million and he received a signing bonus of $9.3 million in 2017. Why would anyone in that position jeopardize all they have going for them because of a stupid decision?
New video released of Marshon Lattimore’s arrest last month in Cleveland, Ohio, his hometown, reveals an unimaginable amount of reckless stupidity that denies logic.
In the video, Lattimore fails to initially tell police that he has a loaded gun in his pants - a concealed weapon. Lattimore is seated in the passenger’s seat of a vehicle with 2 other men that has been pulled over for a traffic violation. But when asked specifically if anyone in the car has a gun, Lattimore reveals that he has a loaded Smith & Wesson gun shoved in the waistline of his pants and informed police that he did have a permit to carry a concealed weapon. Further adding to the situation is police revealing that the gun Lattimore had may have been stolen.
At one point on the video an officer is heard telling Lattimore, “You’re going to shoot your d--- off.” Another officer tells him to “Get yourself a holster, bro.”
The scent of marijuana was heavy. Officers asked if there were any other drugs in the car, but they responded no.
When the officers realized that he was Marshon Lattimore - one of the top cornerbacks in the NFL one said, “The amount of stuff you got going for you...it’s not like you’re a f---ing chump out there, bro.” Lattimore responded, “I know, I’m not,” and explained that he had just gotten back home to Cleveland.
Lattimore was arrested and spent 2 nights in the county jail before being released on bond. The evidence of the case will go to a grand jury to determine if he will face a formal indictment. The other 2 passengers in the vehicle were arrested and charged with inappropriate possession of weapons.
A 24-year-old millionaire star athlete who is sitting in jail for 2 days should be thinking “Why in the hell am I in this position?” The years of dedication through high school and college to put yourself in the coveted position of being a star in the NFL are threatened by what? A loaded gun shoved in the waist of your pants! This had to be a moment of reckoning for Lattimore.
The details of that situation with Marshon Lattimore demand an answer as to why it happened. If you are sitting on a signing bonus of $9.3 million and earring $3.8 million a year - why are you in a situation where you feel like you have to have a loaded gun in your pants?
I would think that anyone who reaches that level of status would never be in a situation where they felt the real need to carry a gun. When you have that kind of money and status in America you have options that are not afforded to the great majority. So why?
I am a strong supporter of the 2nd Amendment, and on my talk show I am constantly cautioning against the temptations to pass new gun laws as a definite solution to gun violence in America. But as I look at the arrest of Marshon Lattimore, I can’t help but think that maybe there is an elephant in the room no one wants to really talk about.
Could it be that in America carrying a gun everywhere is more influenced by cultural norms than a real need for protection? That might explain the confusing factors. The gun in Lattimore’s pants suggests that it may have been a last-minute decision to have a gun. And why? Where would he be going that made him feel like he would need a gun to protect him?
Whatever that situation might be - it was not worth it for him to go there. And even more perplexing is the possibility that the gun might have been stolen! If you make $3.8 million a year with the expectation that your salary is about to increase, why would you not possess a gun that you purchased legally? It does not make sense.
One plausible explanation is that going around with a possible stolen gun casually placed in your pants is that having a gun in every aspect of your life is more about maintaining a cultural status than it is about the need for protection.
And if culture is motivating the desire to always have a gun with you, then isn’t that part of the discussion about gun violence in America?
Nearly everyday there are local stories from New Orleans and stories from across the country that demonstrate that deaths and injuries from guns are often the result of an argument or disagreement being settled with one party whipping out the gun they have with them.
Recently, in New Orleans, 9 kids were shot because someone had a gun at a birthday party and got into an argument. It is amazing how many people are walking around with guns as casually as they might walk around with breath mints.
Are we - as a country - reluctant to even ask the question about whether guns are as much about culture as protection?
