Troubled former NFL running back Doug Martin jumped from the second story window of a rehab center in California and got into a physical altercation with police just months before his tragic death, it has been claimed.
Martin, who last played in the league back in 2018, passed away at the age of 36 last Saturday while in police custody. His cause of death remains unconfirmed.
According to The East Bay Times, the ex-Tampa Bay Buccaneers star died at hospital after being apprehended by cops who were responding to reports of a break-in at a home in East Oakland.
The officers are said to have had a ‘brief struggle’ with the suspected burglar, who became unresponsive after being taken into custody. He was given treatment at the scene before being transported to hospital, where he later died.
Days after his death, Martin’s family revealed his heartbreaking battle with mental illness, describing it as ‘the one opponent from which Doug could not run.’ They also alleged that he had fled his home during the night while feeling ‘overwhelmed and disoriented’ before entering a neighbor’s residence and then being taken into police custody. An investigation into what happened next is underway.
Two months before the devastating incident, the San Francisco Chronicle claims that Martin jumped out the window of his second-floor bedroom and punched the side of the rehab center in a serious mental-health episode.
Doug Martin jumped from the second story window of a rehab center months before his death
The troubled ex-NFL running back, pictured at the league’s Honors awards in 2016, died while in police custody last Saturday
The 2015 All-Pro reportedly checked into Tranquility Rehab Center – a state-licensed private facility in Castro Valley – back in August and tested positive for cocaine and methamphetamine upon arrival, according to the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office. He is also said to have been in possession of fentanyl and a hunting knife.
He twice left the rehab center without permission in the first 48 hours of being there, the sheriff’s office report claims, before testing positive for cocaine when he checked in again on August 12.
One day later, as a clinical supervisor pulled up to the center, she alleges that she found Martin dancing with blood on his hands and face in the front driveway after a psychotic episode.
The supervisor suspected that he had jumped out the window of his bedroom, before she eventually found that his bedroom door was ‘barricaded’. After kicking it open she could see that Martin’s window was open with the screen pushed out.
Two police deputies are then reported to have showed up, with the ex-NFL player seeming ‘extremely paranoid’ and asking ‘if everything was going to be ok.’
After suggesting that he was armed, and deputies asked him to explain, he then stood up before they grabbed his wrists and tried to handcuff him, only for Martin to pull away and slap one of their hands. One officer allegedly punched him twice, in the nose and in the mouth.
Martin is said to have screamed ‘No!’ and grabbed his wrist, before a scuffle ensued between the two of them and some paramedics at the scene. After falling to the ground he reportedly kicked the deputy in the legs repeatedly before being pinned down and handcuffed.
Officers allegedly found three small bags of cocaine in his pocket and a 12-inch chef’s knife in his backpack. They also retrieved a $50 bill coated in white powder in a nearby fountain.
Martin’s tragic mental health struggles were revealed by his family days after his passing
Paramedics then strapped Martin, who was reportedly kicking and thrashing, to a gurney before injecting him with a sedative. He was then placed on a 72-hour psychiatric hold and taken to Castro Valley’s Eden Medical Center.
The temporary detention and psychiatric evaluation of people who are deemed a danger to themselves or others is required under state law. Martin’s case was expected to be sent to the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office for prosecutors to consider charges of possessing controlled substances and resisting arrest, but it was unclear if the case was received or reviewed, the San Francisco Chronicle’s report adds.
Daily Mail has approached the Alameda Country Sheriff’s Office for comment. Martin’s family has requested privacy as they deal with their loss.
Martin went from Stockton, California’s St. Mary’s High School to Boise State before being taken in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft.
He ended his impressive NFL career with 5,356 rushing yards and 30 touchdowns in addition to 148 receptions for another 1,207 yards and a pair of scores.
‘We are deeply saddened to learn of the sudden and unexpected passing of Doug Martin,’ the Buccaneers said in a statement last week. ‘Doug made a lasting impact on our franchise.’
Martin was chosen among the top 50 players in Bucs history when the franchise celebrated its 50th anniversary last season.
