Nassau jury convicts Hempstead man of criminal handgun possession

A Nassau County jury took 15 minutes to convict a Bloods gang member on criminal handgun possession charges Tuesday.

After a five day trial, Anthony Trimble, 23, of Hempstead, was found guilty of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, a violent felony. He faces 3-1/2 to 15 years in prison and is due back in court for sentencing on Dec. 10.

Prosecutors said plainclothes Hempstead Police Department detectives spotted Trimble walking northbound on Terrace Avenue in Hempstead on July 1, 2014 at about 7:10 p.m. with what appeared to be the outline of a handgun in his shorts pocket.

Trimble ran when the detectives approached him, and a detective saw Trimble throw an object over a fence in a vacant lot. The detective arrested Trimble and retrieved the object, which was a small black Beretta .25 caliber pistol that had five rounds in the magazine and one round in the chamber, prosecutors said.

"This dangerous defendant was carrying a loaded handgun as he walked down the street on a summer day," Acting Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas said in a statement Tuesday.

Court of Claims Judge Philip Grella remanded Trimble to the Nassau County jail after the verdict was announced.

"It was hard fought trial. We respect the verdict of the jury although we disagree with it," said Trimble's attorney, Joshua Kahn, of Mineola. "We intend to file a notice of appeal."