Seahawks fullback Derrick Coleman admitted to smoking synthetic marijuana – “Spice” – before an October 14 wreck that saw another vehicle pushed more than 200 feet, Bellevue police claim.
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Coleman’s truck was traveling at 60 miles per hour in a zone with a speed limit of 35 when it struck a Honda Civic on October 14. Coleman kept going full throttle for 260 feet until the Civic was run off the roadway up a small incline, where it flipped. The male driver of the other vehicle was taken to a hospital, where he was treated for injuries that were not life-threatening. Witnesses say Coleman swerved his truck into the center two-way left turn lane and swerved back, striking the rear of another vehicle, the police report said.
According to police, Coleman said he was deaf and had them activate his hearing aids before being read his rights.
During a search of the auto after the collision, officers found a glass spoon pipe with residue, a lighter, an open bag of a Synthetic Cannbinoid labeled “F’d up” and three unopened bags of “Mad Pitbulls”, another Synthetic Cannabinoid.
Witnesses spoke to Coleman after the crash, describing him as “delirious and aggravated”, the report said.
The Seahawks initially suspended Coleman indefinitely before bringing him back the week after the accident. Police collected blood from Coleman several hours after the crash.
Coleman was booked into the King County Jail for investigation of vehicular assault and hit-and-run. He says the King County Prosecutors office is reviewing the report and will make a recommendation at an undetermined time. He admitted smoking spice around 5 p.m., and thought he was fine to drive.
Coleman just completed his fourth season with the Seahawks and is a restricted free agent this offseason. A responding officer picked him up two blocks away, and Coleman later said he was trying to call his agent.
Officers tracked Coleman down two blocks away from the scene of the accident roughly 20 minutes after it happened.
Coleman’s attorney, Stephen Hayne of Bellevue, disputed the results of the investigation.
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Synthetic marijuana is called that because it contains “synthetic cannabinoids”, that are allegedly 100 times stronger than the THC in natural marijuana, and can cause side effects such as “high blood pressure, blurred vision, heart attack, vomiting, seizures, hallucinations, and severe anxiety and paranoia”. Coleman was cooperative with officers and a field sobriety test was conducted.
