Charger Green Arrested on Drug Charges : Police Detectives Discover About a Gram of Cocaine in Linebacker’s Car

Linebacker Mike Green’s future with the Chargers was in doubt Thursday following his arrest on drug charges, which left coaches and teammates stunned and angry.

“I’m mad . . . I’m very upset,” said Coach Don Coryell after learning of Green’s arrest Wednesday, when detectives found about a gram of cocaine in his car.

“He has hurt himself and the team,” Coryell said. “I believed he was a gung-ho player who thought more of himself.”

Veteran linebacker Linden King shared Coryell’s wrath.

“Mike’s a good friend and I hate to see him in trouble, but it’s time to put a stop to this sort of thing,” said King, who favors a crackdown on drug abuse.

“People assume we’re all drug addicts, and that’s just not true. Besides, it makes us all look bad when an athlete gets off with a wrist slap. I think that if you break the law, you shouldn’t get special treatment.”

Owner Alex Spanos is known to feel the same way, which could mean Green’s association with the Chargers is in jeopardy.

Spanos, who was in New York on Thursday, issued a statement which seemed to underscore his previous hardline stance.

“I was greatly disappointed to learn of Mike Green’s arrest,” the statement said, in part. “We will take any steps necessary to rid ourselves of the problem.”

A Charger spokesman, when asked for clarification of the Spanos statement, said, “It’s the first offense (by Green) and we don’t have all the facts yet. He’s certainly not off the team at this point.”

Green, 24, a third-year veteran from Oklahoma State who had led the team in tackles each of the last two seasons, was arrested by San Diego police at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday after leaving an apartment building in Ocean Beach, according to police spokesman Rick Carlson.

A search of the apartment, located at 4812 Del Monte, turned up eight grams of cocaine and resulted in the arrests of Chris Tobar, 33, and Peggy Callis, 28, police said.

Police had been surveying the apartment before the arrests and had observed a series of transactions taking place outside.

Green, who was released Thursday morning after posting $2,000 bail, will be arraigned within 10 days, Carlson said.

Charger veterans report to training camp July 26, and it’s questionable whether Green will be among them.

Dean Spanos, the owner’s son and his closest adviser, said the Chargers will continue their hardline approach to drug abuse.

“We won’t put up with a drug problem,” Spanos said.

He added that the Chargers have no intention of reinstating running back Chuck Muncie, suspended last fall by National Football League Commissioner Pete Rozelle for drug abuse.

Rozelle is expected to make a followup ruling on the Muncie case, perhaps as early as today, but the Chargers almost certainly won’t be obligated to retain Muncie against their wishes. It’s likely that if he’s ruled eligible by Rozelle, Muncie would be waived or traded.

Muncie had long since ceased to figure in the team’s plans, but Green’s case was very different. He figured to be the cornerstone of the linebacking corps, the strongest element in the rebuilt and often ridiculed Charger defense.

Defensive coordinator Tom Bass isn’t going to cop a plea for mercy if he has to do without Green. In fact, Bass seemed to share the hardline approach taken by other members of the organization.

“Players are adults and they must accept responsibility for their actions,” Bass said. “These guys know what they’re doing when they get started with that stuff.”

Bass has been around too long to take anything for granted.

“I wasn’t counting on Mike, or any other player, until I saw him walk on the field,” Bass said. “I don’t mark ‘em in (the lineup) until I can touch ‘em.”

Bass said he knows Green “pretty well” and has an open-door policy that applies to all players. Still, he can’t begin to know the private lives of every player under his command.

“One thing I know for certain is that if you try to go through a season with a player using an illegal substance, it will cost you some games,” Bass said.

Green is the second member of the Charger defense to be involved with cocaine in less than a year. Defensive back Danny Walters was sent to a treatment facility late last season after tests indicated drug involvement.

Are there others?

“I’m not going to lose any sleep wondering about it,” Bass said. “The unfortunate thing is, even when a guy is viewed as a solid citizen, it’s easy to cross the line and start believing he’s really arrived and the rules don’t apply to him. Too many of these guys just assume they’re going to get bailed out of trouble.

“Sooner or later you have to make a moral judgment on whether you condone this sort of thing. And I don’t believe it should be condoned.”

Tight end Eric Sievers said he was surprised by Green’s arrest and wanted to believe in his innocence.

“He was always fired up about playing ball, and we need him to have a winning team,” Sievers said. “He’s been a leader on this team.”

Asked his views on the related situation involving Muncie, Sievers said, “Chuck is a great player and he has paid a great price. But the team has to take a stand at some point and can’t keep making exceptions to the rules. It’s a shame, because (drug abuse) is such a tragic illness.”