Seattle Seahawks player Derrick Coleman told police he had smoked synthetic cannabinoids prior to driving and allegedly causing a hit-and-run in October, according to the police investigation report released Jan. 25.
After being apprehended by law enforcement, Coleman reportedly said he had smoked a synthetic “designer drug” called ‘spice.’ Police also found a glass pipe with a tar-like residue, multiple packets of synthetic cannabinoids named “f’d up” and “mad pitbulls,” packages of “edibles” (items containing THC, the chemical responsible for marijuana’s psychological effects), mouthwash and redness-relieving eye drops.
“He admitted that he had smoked ‘spice’ at 1700 hours, drove somewhere around 1730 and thought hewas fine to drive…Coleman stated he felt like he had passed out,” one of the responding officers wrotein the official accident police report.
Coleman was allegedly under the influence of these drugs and driving erratically when he was involved ina two-car rollover crash in the 13600 block of Southeast 36th Street around 6:20 p.m. on Oct. 14.
Police also noted that Coleman exhibited signs consistent with being impaired and was unsteady on hisfeet, although he passed a field sobriety test.
Multiple medical tests did not find the presence of any drugs in his system.
“He wasn’t impaired when he was driving, and the Bellevue Police Department knows that. And yet, theyaccuse him of being impaired by implication because he allegedly said he smoked something called‘spice.’ They’re just trying to make him look bad…That is irresponsible,” said Stephen Hayne, Coleman’sattorney.
Police collected a blood sample from Coleman six hours after the crash, which Mylett said could haveallowed the drugs to leave Coleman’s system.
“I think the experts will tell you the substance that’s the biggest challenge to detect is ‘spice.’ But, I’mnot an expert in the area,” Bellevue Police Chief Stephen Mylett said during a press conference. “Whetheror not Coleman had ‘spice’ in his system, that’s just one element of proving vehicular assault.”
Bellevue Police Department Drug Recognition Experts, such as the officer assigned to investigate theColeman crash, are trained to identify signs of ‘spice’ ingestion, according to Police DepartmentSpokesperson Seth Tyler.
It was reported that Coleman’s car was traveling at a high rate of speed before hitting another car frombehind, pushing it up onto an embankment and onto a retention wall where it came to a stop upside-down.
Eyewitness statements and the investigation report support that assessment.
Traffic video from that evening is reported to show Coleman’s car cross over a divider lane and proceedvery slowly through an intersection when there were no vehicles or obstructions in front of his vehiclewhile traveling between Coal Creek Parkway and Factoria Boulevard.
Bystanders reportedly helped Coleman from his car and told him to stay put before he jogged or ran off.
“One witness described that he was delirious and aggravated, another that he was incoherent and a thirdwitness stated he was trying to calm Coleman down,” according to the report.
The other driver — a male Bellevue resident — suffered a fractured left clavicle, a concussion andmemory loss from the crash.
Coleman told police that he had looked but had not seen the other car.
Police have found probable cause for felony hit and run and vehicular assault charges and turned the case over to the King County Prosecutor. He has not been charged at this time.
