Report: Marijuana Was Found in Josh Hancock's Vehicle

Sadly, the Josh Hancock story took yet another disappointing twist. From the Post-Dispatch:

Sources close to the crash investigation told the Post-Dispatch on Tuesday that a small amount of marijuana, in a small tin, was recovered from Hancock's demolished vehicle. A Cardinals source said the club was made aware of the finding Monday night.

For whatever it's worth, Hancock was driving a rental, presumably picked up sometime after wrecking his own car early Thursday morning, so if the marijuana belonged to him it was something he left in the car within the 72 hours before his fatal accident.

That doesn't really mean much, and it certainly doesn't imply that he had smoked anything, but it does rule out, say, a forgotten joint rolling around his trunk. But, assuming the marijuana played no part of the accident, is this really that big of a deal?

Maybe from an owner's perspective since it violated baseball's drug policy, but I'm certainly not going to hold it against him. It's still extremely unfortunate, though, since inevitably some people will remember details like these instead of the dozens of touching memorials from those who actually knew him.

Cardinals GM Walt Jocketty spoke to the media on Tuesday for the first time since Hancock's death, revealing that neither he nor Tony La Russa were aware of Hancock's accident on Thursday, something which La Russa refused to comment on previously. Jocketty also answered the awkward question as to whether he felt La Russa's leadership ability was compromised by his DUI this spring:

Pressed on whether La Russa might be more aggressive dealing with suspected alcohol problems if not for his own arrest, Jocketty replied, "Personally, I don't think so. I see how he deals with things. I think he would tell a player, 'Look, it could happen to anybody. It happened to me. You've got to be careful how you conduct yourself.'"

Honestly, you'd think that La Russa wouldn't even have to say anything -- just hearing about the skipper spending the night in the clink should have been enough of for the players to wise up and think ahead. Fortunately no one else died from Hancock's mistake, and if it convinced even one drinker to plan ahead and arrange for a designated driver, there's hope that his death might actually save lives in the future.

Previously at the Fanhouse:
Josh Hancock's Accident Was His Second of the Week
Witnesses Report Josh Hancock Was Drinking Heavily
The Cardinals and Their Fans Honor Josh Hancock
Cardinals Reliever Josh Hancock Killed in Car Wreck
Tony La Russa Takes His DUI Case to Trial