St. Ambrose, the Bishop of Milan in about 339 AD, coined the phrase “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.” Well, not exactly. As many aphorisms do, they change over time and evolve. The original phrase was “Si fueris Romae, Romano vivito; si fueris alibi, vivito sicut ibi.”
“If you are in Rome, live as the Romans do; if you are elsewhere, live as they do there.”
But, you get the drift. In this case, do as the Floridians do.
Sha’Carri Richardson and Christian Coleman were arrested on January 29, 2026. She was charged with excessive speeding, and he was caught carrying a small personal amount of cannabis.
The two athletes have been lavished with money from sponsors through endorsement contracts as well as prize earnings and appearance fees, but neither was prepared for the decorum required for public life. They need help.
And at the same time, the bodycam footage of Richardson begging and pleading not be sent to jail should not have been made public. No evidence from the footage should affect the outcome of the charges in the public opinion. She was already facing the charges, the loss of driving privileges, and a fine. The state did not need to further publicly humiliate her.
The controversies
Richardson started her professional athletics career on the wrong foot. She tested positive for cannabis and was sanctioned just long enough to miss the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games that were held in 2021.
She was not well prepared for public speaking and interacting with competitors or the media. At first, she was brash, dressed gregariously, seemingly without purpose, and treated some of her competitors with a dismissive attitude, especially the Jamaican team.
Early on, she had said that she was affected by her mother’s recent death; however, it is alleged that she did not know her mother and was raised instead by her grandmother.
Richardson’s competition with Jamaica’s top sprinters—especially Shericka Jackson and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce—is often described as part of the historic USA vs Jamaica sprint rivalry in women’s track. Both nations traditionally produce elite sprinters, so head-to-head races naturally create tension and heightened interest. She may have amplified the rhetoric.
In July 2025, she was arrested for assaulting her boyfriend, fellow American sprinter Christian Coleman. The images were caught on camera. To his credit, he did not engage; she was aggressively taunting him. She was charged with fourth-degree assault.
Richardson, an Olympic gold and silver and World’s multi-time medallist, was arrested in Orange County, Florida, on January 29. She was allegedly driving at 104 mph (167 km/h) on a highway and engaging in dangerous driving (tailgating, changing lanes aggressively). Police video shows that her left hand came out of the driver’s window and may have fingered the officer, although the video footage is not conclusive.
Richardson was booked on dangerous and excessive speeding, posted a $500 bond, and is scheduled to appear in court later (e.g., Feb. 26, 2026). Bodycam footage widely circulated shows her pleading with the arresting officer not let her go to jail.
Coleman has had his own controversy. He was suspended for missing three doping tests in 12 months, which is considered equal to a first positive test for performance-enhancing substances.
Coleman had appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport and had his two-year suspension reduced by six months to 18 months total. The suspension spanned from May 2020 to November 2021.
Coleman has earned seven World Championships medals, including four golds in the relays and two silvers.
Draconian laws
To be fair, the Florida state laws around dangerous driving resulting in jail time, and carrying personal amounts of cannabis are draconian. The arresting officer in the speeding incident was aggressive and was out of line in his taunting behaviour from the moment he engaged her.
On the other hand, both athletes should have known that carrying any amount of cannabis is illegal, as is excessive speeding. Coleman was arrested after Richardson had called him from the highway stop. To think he showed up to face officers with cannabis in his car shows how careless he is.
The two need help and guidance as they navigate the complexities of notoriety. The two are well into their careers; Coleman is now age 29, and Richardson is 25.
The first lesson for these two talented athletes is to understand the rules of engagement of where they live and that the laws should apply to them, as they do to anyone else.
As they say, “When in Rome….”
