The Cleveland Cavaliers' James Harden Arrested on Weapons Charge

The Cleveland Cavaliers’ James Harden was arrested in Houston early Saturday and “charged with the unlawful carrying of weapons,” according to TMZ.

The New York Post reported that Harden was taken into custody shortly after 3:40 a.m.

The Post pointed to a California Post report which indicated Harden allegedly had a handgun in his vehicle which “was in plain view” and “was not carried in a holster.”

He was released later Saturday morning on bond and is scheduled to be arraigned on June 22. The charge against Harden is a misdemeanor.

Texas is one of 29 constitutional carry states, which means no permit is required to concealed carry a handgun for self-defense for people 21 and older with a clean criminal record. Moreover, Texas is an open carry state and that, combined with constitutional carry, means no permit is required to open carry a handgun for self-defense either, provided there is nothing prohibiting the carrier from legally possessing a gun.

TMZ noted that the terms of Harden’s bond “ban him from possessing any firearms, ammunition, or other weapons, and from using, possessing, or consuming any alcohol, controlled substance, dangerous drug, or marijuana unless prescribed by a doc.” Also, Harden has to “submit to random urine analysis” per the terms of the bond.

AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio and the director of global marketing for Lone Star Hunts. He holds a PhD in Military History with a focus on the Vietnam War (brown water navy), U.S. Navy since Inception, the Civil War, and Early Modern Europe. He enjoys reading Philosophy and novels by Jack Carr and Nelson DeMille. He is a lever action man in an AR-15 world. Follow him on X: @awrhawkins. You can sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.