State court officers assigned to Schenectady County Family Court had an unusually busy Monday, spotting two stun guns possessed by women entering the court, authorities said.
Officers found one stun gun in the morning and the second in the afternoon, arresting both individuals in unrelated cases, court officials said.
One of weapons is described in court paperwork as a “pink-colored electronic stun gun,” the other as a stun gun “disguised as a flashlight.”
Neither woman is accused of intending to do anything with the stun guns.
Office of Court Administration spokesman Lucian Chalfen commended the officers who spotted the items. Security for Family Court, as well as County Court and City Court, is handled by the state court system.
“When you have two separate, unrelated incidents on two separate floors on the same day, it certainly shows that officers were on the ball and the security worked as it should,” Chalfen said.
Anyone entering court areas must pass through metal detectors. Also, belongings are subject to search and people must pass through an airport-style X-ray machine.
In the first incident, court officers accused Elizabeth Zahdan, 41, of Balltown Road in Schenectady, of possessing the pink colored stun gun just after 10 a.m. while entering the Family Court secure area on the fourth floor of the county building, 620 State St.
Officers charged Zahdan with one count of fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon, a misdemeanor, under a provision of the law prohibiting electronic stun guns among a list of other defined weapons.
Zahdan has since been released.
In the second case, Qwanna T. Davis, 25, of Georgetta Dix Plaza in Schenectady, is accused of possessing the flashlight stun gun while entering the fifth floor secure area at about 2:30 p.m. Monday, officials said.
Davis faces one count of third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, a felony. Her charge increased to a felony due to a prior misdemeanor conviction, according to court paperwork.
Officers also found Davis with a small amount of marijuana, citing her for violation marijuana possession, Chalfen said.
Davis remained at the Schenectady County Jail Tuesday evening on $1,000 bail.
Individuals have been accused of possessing similar items while going through court security in the past.
In January 2014, court officers assigned to Schenectady City Court spotted a 9mm handgun in a woman’s purse as it passed through the X-ray machine. That incident led to the woman’s arrest and the arrest of her boyfriend on related weapons counts.
Reach Gazette reporter Steven Cook at 395-3122, [email protected] or @ByStevenCook on Twitter.
Categories: -News-, Schenectady County
