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Gunman convicted on 14 counts |
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By Jordy Yager
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Posted: 05/16/08 02:12 PM [ET] |
Michael Gorbey, the man arrested for carrying a loaded shotgun on Capitol Hill, was convicted Friday on 14 charges including manufacturing a weapon of mass destruction.
The jury returned the verdict after less than six hours of deliberation. The conviction, which includes being a felon in possession of a firearm and multiple possession-of-ammunition charges, could result in more than 70 years in prison.
The D.C. Superior Court trial, which lasted three weeks, was marked by Gorbey's attempts to prove a government conspiracy against him. He claimed he was framed and that video footage of him carrying a shotgun, which he claimed to be a walking stick, had been altered.
Gorbey will be sentenced July 25.
“Thank goodness it's over,” one member of the jury, who declined to give her name, said as she was leaving.
Rep. Dan Lungren (Calif.), the top Republican on the House Administration Committee's Subcommittee on Capitol Security, said he was pleased with the verdict. Lungren, a former trial lawyer, said the fact that Gorbey was convicted on 14 charges indicated the case against him was overwhelming.
Lungren had been critical of the Capitol Police after learning that an explosive device found in Gorbey’s truck was not discovered for several weeks.
“It’s the kind of thing that could have had terrible consequences up on the Hill,” he said.
“Rather than alarm or panic, this should give people the sense of the true potential threats and to not put our guard down because we haven't had a successful threat against the U.S. Capitol or the Supreme Court,” Lungren said. “There are still threats out there.”
Gorbey was arrested Jan. 18 while walking toward the Supreme Court. He said he had a scheduled appointment with Chief Justice John Roberts.
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