An Egg Harbor Township man arrested on the Atlantic City Boardwalk with a gun and drugs while on parole will be held pending trial.
Curtis Drinks, 24, was just released from prison in March. Since then, he has been arrested twice, Assistant Prosecutor Aaron Witherspoon told the judge at a detention hearing Wednesday.
Drinks — who is listed as Curtis Drakes by the state Department of Corrections — was released from prison March 30, records show.
He was then one of eight people arrested by Atlantic City police in July on drug charges.
The latest arrest happened Friday, after Drinks was allegedly seen rolling a marijuana cigarette on the Boardwalk around South Carolina Avenue.
An officer then found a gun, ammunition and drugs in his backpack, according to the charges.
Drinks was cooperative with police by telling them about the gun, defense attorney Yvonne Maher noted to the judge, adding that the gun was not loaded.
But there was ammunition in a sock, Judge John Rauh said.
In arguing for release, Maher said her client has lifelong ties to Atlantic City and, while he had a gun, there is no indication he would use it for violence.
"Was he going target shooting?" Rauh asked. "Is it safe to say the gun was to protect him or protect his (drugs)?"
Drinks tried to briefly address the court, saying that his father died of COVID-19 about a month and a half after he got out of prison.
"I understand I'm probably going to prison," he began before Rauh stopped him, noting he has a Fifth Amendment right not to incriminate himself.
"Candidly, I don't think you're helping at this particular point," the judge told him.
While Rauh said he doesn't think Drinks is a risk not to appear, he does believe the defendant is a danger to the community.
"He appears to be a gentleman, but he can’t get out of his own way," Rauh said. "I let him go again, there’s going to be a gun and somebody’s going to get shot."
