You can probably forget about seeing James Kirkland fight on May 2. You might want to forget about seeing him fight again any time soon. From the Austin American-Statesman:
Kirkland was arrested Sunday by U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms agents who, along with Austin police, found a loaded .40-caliber Glock pistol in the center console of his Cadillac, according to federal court documents. He was charged with possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon. Kirkland was on probation for a 2003 armed robbery.
Sunday's arrest came after federal agents staking out the Saxet Gun Show watched Kirkland give money to his girlfriend to buy .40-caliber ammunition, the court papers say.
Authorities allege that Kirkland had bought the Glock pistol the day before at the gun show for $525 and tried Sunday to buy another one but was turned down by a seller.
ATF agents said that they followed Kirkland's Cadillac, which his girlfriend was driving at high speed from the North Austin gun show.
Officers found the loaded pistol among documents in the center console of the car. Among the documents was a letter from his Travis County probation officer granting Kirkland permission to temporarily leave the state.
The court papers also say that Kirkland's probation officer told federal agents that she was in the process of revoking his probation in connection with another Austin case in which Kirkland is a suspect. She said that Kirkland allegedly had thrown a .45-caliber Ruger pistol underneath a vehicle.
Well...
What do you really say? The ATF is involved, this isn't a local Barney Fife thing that could quite well be a bungling or something Kirkland might be able to wrangle his way out of if he can figure out a good way to say the gun wasn't his or whatever. He's a suspect in a totally different case, too.
I'll be really clear: I am not just assuming he's guilty, but let's not ignore what's staring us in the face here. Kirkland's probably throwing away a promising career that could've made him a lot of money. His style is one that no one could deny enjoying. He didn't even have to turn out to be a great fighter to have been a genuine star.
I get the feeling already we're going to be wondering "What if?" about James Kirkland for a long time.