:quality(70)/arc-anglerfish-arc2-prod-tronc.s3.amazonaws.com/public/NIXEVEHZIZHXLKXEN6O6D7NJWY.jpg)
Tray Walker was not wearing a helmet and had cannabinoids in his system when his dirt bike struck an SUV on March 17, according to the Miami-Dade Police Department's traffic homicide report. The Ravens cornerback died a day later.
The report, which was completed last month and recently obtained by The Baltimore Sun, found the 23-year-old Walker at fault for the crash. No charges were filed against the driver of the SUV.
Walker's 2010 Honda dirt bike hit a Ford Escape driven by a 62-year-old woman at an intersection in Miami on March 17. The crash occurred at 7:52 p.m. (21 minutes after sunset) on a dry, unlit street in residential Miami, less than two miles from where Walker attended high school with future NFL standouts Teddy Bridgewater and Amari Cooper.
Walker was wearing black from chest to toe, and his red and white bike had no headlight, according to the investigations report. Walker applied the brake, and his dirt bike fell on its left side and began to slide. It struck the left side of the SUV, causing him to be thrown to the left side of it, the report says.
The driver of the SUV said she stopped at the posted stop sign, ensured the road was clear, and then drove through the intersection when Walker's bike struck her vehicle. She was uninjured and remained at the scene.
Miami-Dade rescue units arrived, administered first aid to Walker and transported him to the Jackson Memorial Hospital Ryder Trauma Center in "extremely critical condition." He had massive brain swelling and was pronounced brain-dead less than 24 hours after the crash.
An autopsy performed the following week determined Walker died of "multiple blunt injuries." Toxicology tests showed that he tested positive for cannabinoids, which are chemicals found in marijuana and other related products such as synthetic marijuana, edibles and wax.
The Ravens declined to comment.
Baltimore Ravens Insider
Ron Butler, who became Walker's agent in January, said he was unaware that Walker had cannabinoids in his system but said he uses the accident as a cautionary example to his other clients.
"You've got different players into different things. Tray's thing was he liked to ride bikes," Butler said. "When he got in the accident, that was the first time I knew he was into bikes. Being under contract with an NFL team, you're not supposed to be on a motorized bike. I don't think that was explained to Tray prior to him signing his rookie contract."
NFL coaches often talk anxiously about down times in the offseason, when players are out of their regular routines and out of sight from the team.
Following Walker's death, coach John Harbaugh wrote an open letter meant to comfort and inspire his players. One line tells them to "turn away from unnecessary and risky behavior."
Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti chartered a plane for the team to attend Walker's funeral in Miami. Several hundred people paid their respects to Walker, who had just finished his rookie season. Walker, a fourth-round draft pick out of Texas Southern, was a cornerback but played mostly special teams in eight games with the Ravens.
twitter.com/MarkRSelig