In April, Browns nose tackle Shaun Rogers was stopped at airport security because he “forgot” he had “accidentally” left a cocked semiautomatic weapon with a bullet in the chamber in his carryon bag.  Thursday, he was in court agreeing to a deal to make his felony gun charge go away if he completed a diversion program and did some community service — oh, and he had to give up his semiautomatic.

The defensive lineman’s attorney, who wore a loud purple blazer to the hearing, said the program could last up to a year and his client’s community service include helping with a program designed to reduce truancy in Cleveland public schools.  An early draft of Rogers’ speech to scare kids straight:

Forgetting things is bad.  I forgot I had a loaded semiautomatic one time when I went to the airport, and now I have one less semiautomatic and I have to talk to you kids.  So don’t forget to go to school.  Forgetting things is bad.

His lawyer also wanted everyone to know that Rogers did have a license for his semiautomatic weapon, and that it’s a personal decision many athletes make:

The fact is that athletes are a target, they are victimized in some senses and targets by the criminal element. Some of them feel that they need to have weapons for their own protection. Those are personal judgments that each individual makes.

Fine, he has a right to own a gun.  But isn’t part of responsible gun ownership knowing where your loaded semiautomatic weapons are at all times, or at least when going through airport security?

The NFL is still deciding if they’ll dish out any punishment of their own to Rogers.  And Robaire Smith — the other Cleveland Browns defensive lineman who’s been arrested for accidentally bringing a gun to an airport in the last year — he’s still facing a misdemeanor gun charge and up to a year in jail.