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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Suspect identified in Coeur d’Alene Lake Drive crashes

From staff reports
A chaotic scene unfolded in Coeur d’Alene Tuesday morning after a woman reportedly caused a crash, stole a car with three children inside and then caused another crash. The Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office responded to a crash at Silver Beach Loop Road and Coeur d’Alene Lake Drive at 7:30 a.m. this morning. A silver Mercedes SUV was reportedly driving east in the westbound lane and hit a Subaru driven by a Patricia Desmet, of Coeur d’Alene, according Sheriff’s Office spokesman Lt. Stu Miller. An uninvolved driver with three children in her Volvo stopped to help. The driver of the silver Mercedes, later identified by Miller as Kara L. Powers, 33, stole the Volvo and crashed it into the side of the Subaru. The children were able to escape the Volvo before the woman drove off again, Miller said. Minutes later on Coeur d’Alene Lake Drive at Potlatch Hill Road, the Volvo rear-ended a pickup truck at high speed, causing both cars to roll several times. Both drivers had to be extricated and were taken to Kootenai Health with significant injuries, Miller said. Powers was then taken to a Spokane hospital because of the severity of her injuries. The pickup driver, William Akin, was at Kootenai Health in serious but stable condition, Miller said. The rest of the people involved, including Akin’s 13-year-old passenger, were either uninjured or were treated and released Tuesday. Authorities believe alcohol or drugs were a factor in the crashes.