On May 4, 2026, at approximately 1:01pm, Blaine Officer Plowman responded to a report that a male appeared to be under the influence of a controlled substance. The reporting party stated the male was exhibiting "cracked out" behavior and hitting his head on a steering wheel. The male was later identified via his MN DL as MICHAEL DAVID ROWLES [DOB REDACTED], the Defendant herein. Officer Plowman observed Defendant leaving a parking lot near the intersection of Club West Pkwy NE and 109th Ave NE in Blaine, Anoka County, MN. Defendant stopped in the crosswalk and failed to turn despite a 15-second gap in traffic.
Officer Plowman also observed Defendant was very animated, waving his arms and leaning over the passenger seat. Defendant eventually turned, but only after an oncoming vehicle with the right-of-way approached. Officer Plowman continued following Defendant until Defendant stopped very close to the vehicle in front of him, which appeared to be an attempt to avoid being adjacent to Officer Plowman. Defendant was still behaving erratically, digging around the passenger seat area and using his phone. Officer Plowman eventually conducted a traffic stop after Defendant touched the fog line twice.
Defendant told Officer Plowman that he was heading to a marijuana dispensary after purchasing a smoking apparatus at the Yalla Tobacco shop in Blaine. He stated that he has a medical marijuana card. Officer Plowman observed that Defendant appeared restless, with glossy eyes and poor motor control, gaunt with sunken cheekbones and eyes, and appeared to have cottonmouth. Officer Plowman also observed, in plain view, a glass pipe commonly used for smoking narcotics. Defendant admitted to using fentanyl, with the last use about 3-4 months ago.
Officer Plowman then had Defendant step out to perform standardized field sobriety tests. Defendant displayed numerous signs of impairment during the tests and had difficulty following instructions. Defendant was arrested and, after being handcuffed, attempted to flee on foot. Officer Plowman grabbed and pinned Defendant to the vehicle as Defendant continued to resist by splaying his feet and tensing. Officer Plowman obtained a search warrant for Defendant's blood or urine. Defendant told Officer Plowman that he would not comply with the warrant and requested to be taken to jail.
While in the squad, Defendant became folded over and nonresponsive. Officer Plowman had to physically shake Defendant to rouse him and observed that Defendant was sweating heavily and not coherent. When asked about the ingestion of narcotics, Defendant said he had swallowed a couple of doses of fentanyl in a baggie prior to the traffic stop. Defendant was then taken to the hospital by EMS because of concerns he would overdose. While at the hospital, Defendant attempted to flee again by running toward the ER exit.
