WAUKEGAN, Ill. (April 30, 2007) -- Chicago Bears defensive tackle Terry "Tank" Johnson pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor weapons charge as part of an arrangement with prosecutors that will keep him from serving additional time in jail.
The 25-year-old Johnson pleaded guilty to one count of possessing a firearm without an owner's identification, said Mary Stanton, chief of the Lake County Court's misdemeanor division.
He was ordered to serve 45 days in jail, which will be served concurrently with a four-month sentence he's already serving in the Cook County Jail for violating his probation, she said.
Johnson also was ordered to donate $2,500 to the Gurnee Police Department and $2,500 to the Gurnee Exchange Club's child abuse prevention program.
"I want to say that I very much regret the mistake in judgment that brought me here today," Johnson said during the 25-minute hearing. "My plea today is intended to convey that I accept responsibility for my actions."
Johnson was arrested on misdemeanor weapons charges Dec. 14 after police raided his Gurnee home and found six unregistered firearms.
At the time, he was on probation in a November 2005 Cook County case. In that case, he'd pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge stemming from an arrest in which a nightclub valet reported seeing Johnson with a handgun in his sport utility vehicle.
Last month, a judge sentenced Johnson to jail for 120 days for his probation violation. He also was ordered to pay a $2,500 fine.
Johnson's bodyguard, Willie B. Posey, was arrested on felony drug charges after the raid on Johnson's home. Posey was shot and killed two days later during an early morning fight while he and Johnson were at a nightclub in Chicago.
The Bears suspended Johnson for one game for being at the club.
Stanton also said weapons and ammunition seized from Johnson's home during the December raid must be destroyed.
