Racine police say they initiated a traffic stop with a man they cited earlier in the evening for not having a valid driver’s license and that he tried to swallow marijuana before bringing his car to a complete stop.
Zavone Luckett, 28, of Racine, was charged Friday in Racine County Circuit Court with one felony count each of possession of cocaine and marijuana possession and one misdemeanor count of possession of drug paraphernalia. If convicted, he faces up to just over 16 years in prison and/or up to $35,500 in fines.
According to the criminal complaint, officers on May 21 were patrolling the neighborhood of 11th Street and Irving Place when they observed Luckett exit a vehicle in the 1100 block of Irving and go into a house. Police circled the block and saw Luckett driving westbound so they activated their lights and sirens to pull him over for continuing to drive without a valid license.
Officers say Luckett slowed down but didn’t stop. From their vantage point, Luckett appeared to be eating something, a practice police say they’ve seen before when suspects try to swallow drugs before speaking to law enforcement. When the defendant finally did stop and officers made contact with him, he allegedly had pieces of marijuana stuck in his teeth, his tongue was stained green, and his breath smelled like fresh marijuana.
Police searched Luckett and say he was very cooperative, the complaint reads, telling officers, “You know I smoke” during the search. The small corner of a baggie with marijuana residue was found in Luckett’s shoe, and he was taken into custody for having drug paraphernalia.
When officers arrived at Racine County Jail with Luckett, they say they found marijuana on the seat in the squad car so jail staff said they would conduct a strip search. Jail staff located a small baggie pinched between the defendant’s buttocks but couldn’t remove it, and Luckett refused so officers made him ready to transport to Wheaton Franciscan St. Mary’s.
Luckett became extremely uncooperative, twisting his body from side-to-side in an attempt to push the drugs inside his body, the complaint reads. During transport to the hospital, the defendant admitted that police caught him with drugs. At the hospital, Luckett continued to be uncooperative and tried to jump out of the chair in which he was seated.
Police say when the defendant jumped out of the chair, there were two baggies on the seat; one of which contained 2.8 grams of marijuana and the other 3.8 grams of individually packaged balls of crack cocaine. Luckett was determined to be so combative he had to be restrained on a hospital bed.
The defendant remains in the Racine County Jail on a $7,500 cash bond. He will next be in court May 27 for his preliminary hearing.
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