Bears' Gilmore charged with pot possession

July 23, 2006

BY This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it AND KENDRICK MARSHALL Staff Reporters

Just days before the Bears are due to report to training camp, tight end John Gilmore has landed in trouble after being arrested early Saturday morning outside a Gold Coast nightclub, police said.

Gilmore, 26, was charged with criminal trespassing, resisting arrest, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of less than two grams of marijuana after he allegedly refused to leave Leg Room, 7 W. Division, police said.

The charges are misdemeanors, police News Affairs Officer Marcel Bright said. Around 3 a.m., Gilmore and another man were asked to leave the bar by management after causing a disturbance, Bright said. Gilmore refused to leave, and the bar staff called police, he said.

Police asked Gilmore to leave, and he again refused. At that point, the officers tried to arrest Gilmore, but he pulled away, Bright said. After a brief argument, Gilmore was finally arrested.

The man with Gilmore, who was not a member of the Bears, was not arrested, Bright said. Gilmore bonded out around 7 a.m. A preliminary hearing is set for Sept. 15.

Players are subject to fines and suspension by the NFL for violations of the personal conduct code, and the marijuana possession charge could potentially land Gilmore in the league's drug program and subject him to random drug tests.

Contributing: Sun-Times wires

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