Freeze, Say Cheese: Rome Woman Smiles for Arrest Photo

A Rome woman seemingly laughed off a gun possession charge as she was captured grinning ear-to-ear in her arrest photo released by Rome Police.

This followed a vehicle traffic stop in the City of Rome at around 7:45 p.m. on Floyd Avenue on Wednesday night. Officers say when they approached the stopped vehicle, a shotgun was observed in plain site on the backseat floor of the vehicle. The driver and occupant were removed as a safety precaution, police said.

Officers reported that after searching the passenger, Lindsay Hoffmeister, 30, she was found to be in possession of a Ruger 9mm handgun and two magazines, loaded with 9mm ammunition.

Officers seized both weapons and ammo, and say Hoffmeister was arrested on a charge of criminal possession of a weapon, fourth-degree, as she does not own an unlicensed gun and doesn't have a New York State Pistol License. A fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon charge is merely a misdemeanor.

via Rome Police

Hoffmeister was taken to the Rome Police Department to be processed on the charge, which is when the smiling photo was snapped. She was then released and given an appearance, police said.

Police said additional charges were pending the results of their investigation, and that the driver of the vehicle was ticked for failure to stop at a red light.

[AUTHOR'S NOTE: All persons mentioned above suspected of wrongdoing or charged in any cases are innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.]

via Rome Police

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