Suspect held for drugs

Man reportedly tried to take Taser

By Jeremy Pawloski | The Olympian • Published August 28, 2008

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LACEY – A handcuffed alleged drug dealer swallowed suspected narcotics during a traffic stop and tried to take a Lacey police officer's Taser, court papers state.

Eric Bryant, 37, was being held Wednesday night at Thurston County Jail with bail set at $20,000 after a Thurston County Superior Court judge found probable cause to order him held on suspicion of one count each of possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute and attempting to disarm a law enforcement or corrections officer.

According to court papers:

• Lacey police Officer Adam Seig pulled Bryant over about 8:10 p.m. Tuesday in the 6200 block of Pacific Avenue Southeast. Bryant was detained because his license was suspended and he had a felony arrest warrant out of Seattle, two Lacey warrants and warrants in Olympia.

• Seig found $1,185 in cash in Bryant's pants pocket after arresting him.

• During a vehicle search, Seig found a small amount of methamphetamine and a glass smoking pipe. A passenger told Seig that Bryant "stuck something in his mouth prior to being pulled over." Seig said he asked Bryant to open his mouth, and Bryant, who was in the backseat of Seig's patrol car, refused.

• "Seig had to force his jaw open but Bryant kept his tongue press(ed) down," court papers state. Seig "applied pressure to Bryant's jaw" to force him to lift his tongue, and Seig saw a small plastic bag tied in a knot in Bryant's mouth.

"Bryant was ordered to spit the narcotic out but he refused," court records state.

• During a struggle, Bryant tried to swallow the suspected drug. "As Officer Seig was trying to control Bryant, Bryant grabbed Officer Seig's Taser with his handcuffed left hand and began pulling. Bryant was able to eventually detach the safety latch to the Taser on Officer Seig's holster."

• Seig ordered Bryant to let go of the Taser five to six times. Seig eventually regained control of the Taser with the help of two other Lacey officers. Bryant, however, "was able to swallow the narcotics" and was transported to Providence St. Peter Hospital in Olympia.

The passenger told Seig "that Bryant is a methamphetamine and marijuana dealer and that he is her boyfriend's main methamphetamine dealer."

Jeremy Pawloski covers public safety for The Olympian. He can be reached at 360-754-5465 or jpawloski@theolympian.com