Driver in rollover crash cited
Published 5:00 am Thursday, May 16, 2013
The driver in a Wednesday morning single-vehicle rollover crash on U.S. Highway 97 north of Madras was cited for several offenses, the Oregon State Police said.
Nicholas M. Russell, 18, of Coeur D’Alene, Idaho, was cited on suspicion of reckless driving, third-degree assault, recklessly endangering another person, failure to maintain a lane of travel and for having no operator license.
Russell was driving a Chevrolet Blazer northbound around 5 a.m. when he drove into the southbound lane. The vehicle continued onto the shoulder and rolled over twice before coming to rest on its wheels, according to police.
One of the car’s passengers, Joseph Gillespie, 17, of Dublin, Calif., was ejected during the rollover and seriously injured. He was taken by air ambulance to St. Charles Bend. Russell and the other passenger in the car, Trent Martin, 18, of Coeur D’Alene, received nonlife-threatening injures and were taken to St. Charles Madras.
Police said driver fatigue was a contributing factor to the crash.
The highway was blocked for an hour after the incident.
— From staff reports