Indiana: Police believe Kokomo man was high when he hit police car

A Kokomo man who was allegedly smoking marijuana in his car Sunday afternoon was arrested after he backed into a police car.  Kokomo police arrested Tyler A. Donson, 18, 1200 block of Moccasin Trail, at 4:15 p.m. Sunday in the 2600 block of North Washington Street on a misdemeanor charge of possession of marijuana.

An officer was dispatched to the area in reference to people allegedly smoking marijuana in a vehicle headed northbound on Washington Street, according to an accident report. Police located a 2005 Buick Lesabre that matched the description of the suspected vehicle in a parking lot, so the officer parked his car behind the Buick and got out.

Donson, who was driving the Buick, began backing up and struck the front bumper of the 2014 Dodge Charger police car. Donson told police he didn’t see the Charger parked behind him. The officer smelled marijuana in the vehicle and subsequently arrested Donson. There was another person in the Buick, but that individual was not identified in the accident report or arrest records.

The Buick was towed from the scene due to Donson’s arrest, and the accident caused an estimated $2,501 to $5,000 worth of damage. No one was injured.

Results of a blood test on Donson are still pending, but the officer cited illegal drugs and unsafe backing as the cause of the accident. Donson is being held at Howard County Jail on an $8,000 bond. He’s set to appear in Howard County Superior Court 1, though a hearing date had not yet been set Monday.