Madison Cawthorn pleads guilty after bringing gun through airport

Former North Carolina Representative Madison Cawthorn pleaded guilty on Friday to a third-degree misdemeanor charge for bringing a loaded gun into Charlotte Douglas International Airport, WSOCTV reports.

The former congressman’s guilty plea halted a trial set to begin Friday after being delayed in January, resulting in his sentence to pay a $250 fine. Prosecutors reportedly asked to confiscate the weapon, but the judge rejected the request on the grounds that the city ordinance does not grant that power.

Cawthorn told WSOCTV that he “made a mistake,” forgetting that his gun was in his backpack, and had learned from the incident.

Want a daily wrap-up of all the news and commentary Salon has to offer? Subscribe to our morning newsletter, Crash Course.

In April 2022, the Transportation Security Administration reported they had found a loaded gun, which police later confirmed was Cawthorn’s 9 mm Staccato C2, in his luggage as he passed through a security checkpoint. Local police cited him for possession of a dangerous weapon on city property.

The former representative was previously fined for attempting to bring a gun through security at another North Carolina airport, Asheville Regional, on February 2021, according to The Charlotte Observer.

Cawthorn previously represented North Carolina’s 11th district in Congress. He now lives in Florida.