For love or money, they pay big for buying guns

BUYING A GUN illegally for someone else can have far-reaching consequences. Here's a look at some recent cases, culled from court records, of female straw buyers blinded by love or fueled by financial need:

* Adelaide Green, 27, is a single mother of four now serving five to 10 years at the state prison in Muncy for buying two guns for Jerome Cerdan, her children's father and a repeat offender with 12 prior arrests, court records show. Cerdan got off easier for his offense; he was sentenced to 11 to 23 months for a robbery.

* Dorothy Peretta, 24, was arrested for buying a gun for three friends under age 21, the legal age to purchase a gun. One was just 17. The three used the gun in a shooting in Overbrook just three hours later. The single mother of two pleaded guilty; she is scheduled for sentencing Nov. 2.

* Ebony R. Smith, 28, single mother of seven, allegedly bought a gun for Maurice Boykin, a parolee and the father of one of her children. Boykin was a repeat offender with seven prior arrests for offenses including armed robbery and drugs. Smith faces a Nov. 16 preliminary hearing.

- Dana DiFilippo