Brewer man gets 14 days for firearm violation

BANGOR – Honesty apparently will cost a Brewer man two weeks in prison.

James A. Berberian Jr., 53, walked into federal court Thursday expecting to be sentenced to probation, according to his attorney, Terence Harrigan of Bangor. Instead, Berberian was sentenced to 14 days in prison and one year of probation.

Berberian was indicted in February in U.S. District Court in Bangor for being a felon in possession of a firearm. He was convicted in Massachusetts in 1980 of manslaughter and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, according to court documents.

He pleaded guilty to the federal firearm violation in April.

Before U.S. District Judge John Woodcock for sentencing Thursday, Berberian answered yes when the judge asked if he had used alcohol or drugs in the past 24 hours – a question asked of every defendant at sentencing hearings in federal court.

Berberian told the judge he “had a smoke” on Wednesday night, according to Harrigan. When Woodcock asked what the defendant meant by smoke, Berberian said that he had smoked marijuana the night before his sentencing.

Harrigan said Thursday that he and others in the courtroom were surprised by the defendant’s admission, but the judge felt that Berberian’s decision to smoke marijuana the night before his sentencing showed poor judgment.

Efforts to reach Assistant U.S. Attorney Gail Malone for comment were unsuccessful.

The weapon Berberian owned that led to the charge was a Civil War-era black powder weapon that had been left to him by his father, Harrigan said.

In other court action, a federal fugitive warrant was issued earlier this week for James W. Raye, 44, of Calais after he failed to show up for sentencing in federal court on Monday.

Raye was scheduled to be sentenced for making false statements on a firearm application.

He was indicted in December on two additional charges, being a felon in possession of a firearm and possession of a firearm after a conviction of domestic violence. In a plea agreement, prosecutors had agreed to drop those charges in exchange for his guilty plea on the third charge, according to court documents.

Raye could face additional charges, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.