Former Raven To Enter Plea On Gun, Drug Charges

TOWSON, MD — A former Ravens running back will enter a plea for drug and weapons charges he caught after a crash in Owings Mills during the winter. Alex Collins, 24, appeared in Baltimore County Circuit Court Monday, June 24, for what was to be the first day of trial. Court records show that the new plan is for him to return for a plea hearing in July.

Collins was charged with drug possession with intent to distribute, possession of m0re than 10 grams of marijuana, having a handgun in his vehicle and having a firearm in connection with drug trafficking.

The charges came after a crash in the 10000 block of Dolfield Boulevard. A passerby called 911 to report that a black Corvette had crashed into a tree at 6:48 a.m. on Friday, March 1, police said.

Collins, of the unit block of Woodfield Court, was found asleep and uninjured inside the vehicle, according to authorities. He said his car had slid off the snow-covered road around 4:30 a.m. as he was driving a friend home from Towson, where they had departed around 4 a.m., police reported.

The friend had walked home, while Collins said he stayed at the scene and called for a tow truck before falling asleep, according to the report.

Officers said they smelled a strong odor of marijuana and based on probable cause, searched the vehicle, turning up 5 ounces of marijuana in a large glass jar on the passenger side floorboard.

There was also a handgun on the driver's side floorboard, police reported.

Collins was arrested at 7:35 a.m. March 1, according to officials. He posted $7,500 bond and was released after midnight Saturday, March 2.

Authorities said that Collins waived his Miranda rights and told officers he had marijuana as well as firearms at his home, where police executed a search warrant and recovered two rifles, ammunition and less than 10 grams of marijuana.

The afternoon of the crash, the Ravens announced the team had waived Collins. The team reported that it had picked him up after he was released by the Seattle Seahawks in 2017, and he went on to become an "offensive star that captured the nation's attention and adoration with his impressive running and Irish dancing," rushing for 973 yards and averaging 4.6 yards each carry. The 2018 season was cut short by a foot injury in December, and Collins had slipped to an average of 3.6 yards per carry, according to the Ravens.

Collins has a plea hearing scheduled for July 3 in Baltimore County Circuit Court.

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A friend in his vehicle at the time of the crash was initially charged with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and possession of more than 10 grams of marijuana.

Police said that Collins and his passenger — Tykheem Jaquon Deundrea Dunaway, 28, of the 10000 block of Barnes Avenue in Owings Mills — gave conflicting stories about who was the owner of the pot in the vehicle.

Charges against Dunaway were dismissed, according to court records.

Collins and his attorney appeared in court in Towson Monday, June 24, according to the Baltimore Sun. His lawyer told the newspaper previously that there were "disputed facts" in the case, in particular whose drugs were in the jar.