NORRISTOWN — A Berks County man admitted to illegally possessing a firearm in Upper Hanover Township and is awaiting his fate from a judge.
Richard Birkmire, 39, of the 600 block of Main Street, Bally, pleaded guilty in Montgomery County Court to a felony charge of person not to possess a firearm in connection with an April 2023 traffic stop in the area of Route 663 and Geryville Pike in Upper Hanover.
Judge William R. Carpenter deferred sentencing until December.
The open guilty plea means Birkmire has no deals with prosecutors regarding his potential sentence. The judge will have sole discretion in fashioning the sentence.
Birkmire, who remains free on bail pending sentencing, faces a possible maximum sentence of 5 to 10 years in prison on the charge. However, state sentencing guidelines could allow for a lesser sentence.
The investigation began about 10:10 p.m. April 10, 2023, when Upper Perkomen police officers patrolling the area of Main Street and Pottstown Avenue in Pennsburg observed a silver Cadillac sedan operated by Birkmire proceed through a steady traffic signal, according to a criminal complaint.
Police caught up to the Cadillac at Route 663 and Geryville Pike in Upper Hanover and conducted a traffic stop. Police identified Birkmire as the driver and lone occupant of the vehicle.
While speaking with Birkmire, police detected the odor of marijuana emanating from the interior of the car. When asked if there was any marijuana in the car, Birkmire allegedly said “No,” and that the odor was linked to a friend who he had recently dropped off and who possessed marijuana in the vehicle, according to court documents.
“I continued speaking with Birkmire and asked if there was anything else in the car to which he replied he had a gun in the car,” Upper Perk Police Officer Matthew James Roberts alleged in the criminal complaint.
Birkmire allegedly gave police consent to search the vehicle.
“A search yielded no illicit drugs however I located a loaded gun tucked between the center console and front seat. The gun was in a holster and within arm’s length of Birkmire, which he could easily exercise control over and readily employ as a weapon,” Roberts alleged.
In court papers, police identified the gun as “a .44-caliber black powder percussion cap style revolver handgun.”
“While on scene Birkmire stated that he does not have a permit to carry a concealed firearm in Pennsylvania,” Roberts wrote in the arrest affidavit.
Police alleged a review of Birkmire’s criminal history revealed he had felony convictions in New Jersey “which make him a prohibited possessor of a firearm.”
Other charges of carrying a firearm without a license, driving under suspension and failure to stop at a red signal are slated to be dismissed against Birkmire at sentencing time in exchange for his guilty plea to the most serious gun-related charge.
Source: Berkshire mont
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