In brief: Accident victim doesn’t lose leg
Doctors were able to avoid amputating the leg of a woman injured in a motorcycle-vehicle collision late Saturday on the West Plains, officials said Sunday.
Laura Elliott, 48, suffered a compound fracture to her left femur. Earlier accounts from the Spokane County Sheriff’s Department said her leg had been amputated. She remains in serious condition at a local hospital.
Elliott was riding on the back of a Harley-Davidson motorcycle driven by her husband, Michal Foutz, 52, of Edwall, Wash. The couple were heading home from the Hillyard Festival when Foutz cut one of the corners on Tucker Prairie Road, according to the Sheriff’s Department. Foutz crossed the centerline at approximately 10:40 p.m. and struck a Toyota Camry driven by Donald Brian, 47, of Gig Harbor, Wash. Brian was uninjured. Foutz suffered several fractures in his lower left leg.
The Sheriff’s Department said Foutz had been drinking earlier, so traffic investigators took a blood sample to determine if impairment contributed to the accident. Results from a blood-sample analysis by the Washington State Toxicology Laboratory take approximately six weeks.
Trooper says man hit him with car
A Spokane man was arrested Sunday after his vehicle struck an Oregon State Police trooper and knocked the trooper to the ground, officials said.
Jacob John Melton, 31, was pulled over for traveling 85 mph in a 65 mph speed zone on Interstate 84 west of The Dalles, according to the Wasco County Sheriff’s Office.
The OSP trooper was talking to Melton after issuing him a traffic citation when Melton accelerated to leave, according to police reports. His car fishtailed on the gravel shoulder and knocked the officer to the ground. The incident occurred at about 1:17 p.m.
Melton stopped and remained at the scene as the trooper radioed for help. The trooper was treated for minor injuries at an area hospital and released.
Melton was arrested for reckless driving, recklessly endangering another person and attempted assault on a public safety officer. He was booked into a correctional facility in The Dalles.
Traffic fatalities down in Idaho
TWIN FALLS, Idaho – The Idaho Transportation Department says fatal traffic crashes in 2010 dropped for a fifth straight year.
The department reports that in 2010 there were 209 fatalities from 185 crashes in Idaho.
The Times-News reports that’s 7.5 percent fewer deaths than in 2009.
The department says seat belt use appears to be up across the state.
Longtime senator from Oregon dies
PORTLAND – Former Sen. Mark Hatfield, an outspoken critic of war whose liberal views often put him at odds with fellow Republicans, died Sunday. He was 89.
Hatfield, who had become increasingly frail in recent years, died at a Portland residence, said Gerry Frank, a longtime friend and former aide.
Also a former governor, Hatfield was the longest serving U.S. senator in Oregon history, serving five terms from 1967 to 1997. He gained fame for key efforts against American involvement in Vietnam and the Persian Gulf war, but also spoke in favor of President Bush’s decision to invade Iraq.