Former Lakers Guard Pleads Guilty to Gun Charge, Sentence Revealed

A 2020 champion has run afoul of the law.

Sep 24, 2020; Lake Buena Vista, Florida, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (1), Los Angeles Lakers forward Anthony Davis (3), Los Angeles Lakers guard Alex Caruso (4) and Los Angeles Lakers guard Rajon Rondo (9) celebrate after defeating the Denver Nuggets in game four of the Western Conference Finals of the 2020 NBA Playoffs at AdventHealth Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-Imagn Images / Kim Klement-Imagn Images

Former title-winning Los Angeles Lakers point guard Rajon Rondo pleaded guilty to gun charges on Tuesday. 

In January, the Kentucky product was pulled over by Indiana law enforcement after a caller reported Rondo for alleged reckless driving on Interstate 65. The Indiana State Police officer claimed to have smelt marijuana in Rondo’s car, which led to the officer opting to search the vehicle. 

While searching the vehicle for marijuana, the officer found a gun. Rondo had a prior protection order against him, which meant he was not allowed to possess a gun. Rondo was arrested at the scene and taken into custody for two drug related charges, including the marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia, and illegally possessing a firearm. There was a minor present in Rondo’s vehicle at the time of the arrest, but the juvenile was released to a family member. 

He appeared in the Jackson County, Indiana courthouse on Tuesday to plead guilty to the firearm charge. Initially, Rondo pleaded not guilty after his arrest but changed it on Tuesday. The plea change resulted in the dismissal of both drug-related charges, a $189 fine in court costs, and 180 days of probation.

As stated before, Rondo had a protection order placed against him. In May 2022, a Louisville woman alleged that Rondo threatened her life with a gun in her home. Children were allegedly present in the home during the incident. 

The woman filed an emergency protection order against Rondo, and it was granted by a judge two days after the incident. Rondo was mandated to refrain from communication with the woman and stay at least 500 feet away from her.   

The protection order was dropped in June 2022. However, the same woman filed a second emergency protection order a few months later in March 2023, which was the order that prohibited Rondo from possessing a firearm. The second protection order was also dropped in August 2023. Rondo faced no punishment from the NBA, but he retired shortly after.

A year after the second emergency protection order, Rondo announced his retirement from professional basketball after a 16-season NBA career in April. He played for the Lakers from 2018-20 and for half of his final season in 2021-22. He won his second NBA championship with the Lakers in 2020 (and 2008).

The four-time NBA All-Star averaged 9.8 points, 4.5 rebounds, 7.9 assists, and a 45.6 field goal percentage throughout his career. Rondo is a four-time All-NBA Defensive Team selection, with two first-team (2010, 2011) and two second-team (2009, 2012) honors. He was a three-time NBA assists champion (2012, 2013, 2016) and was the NBA steals leader in 2010. 

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