Dashawn Melique Lewis, 19, and a 15-year-old who will be charged as a juvenile, were taken into custody on Wednesday morning after a patrol officer spotted them driving on West Baltimore Street with a suspended registration and inoperable brake light.
The traffic stop was initiated shortly before 2 p.m. on Oct. 9 on Westview Drive.
According to a spokesperson from the sheriff's office, Lewis was driving with the teen in the passenger seat when they were stopped, and when prompted to exit the vehicle to allow a police K9 to investigate, the minor stood up and a handgun was found on his seat.
Both Hampstead residents were then taken into custody.
During the subsequent search, deputies found a baggie of cannabis on the driver, and a second handgun and an additional baggie of cannabis in a backpack that had been located near the underage passenger.
Lewis and the teen - who is being charged as a juvenile - were charged with:
- Carrying a loaded handgun on or about their person;
- Knowingly transported a loaded handgun in a vehicle;
- Knowingly transporting a handgun in a vehicle;
- Possessing a regulated firearm under the age of 21.
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