Woman charged with felonies after Pullman accident

MOSCOW, Idaho — A 53-year-old Clarkston woman pleaded not guilty Friday to two felony charges related to a rollover accident she allegedly caused in Pullman that resulted in one injury and a power outage for about 2,270 Pullman and Albion residents.

Cheryl A. Bynum was taken into custody by Whitman County sheriff’s deputies Monday night after she allegedly drove up to 90 mph on Grand Avenue, sideswiping vehicles and allegedly causing the rollover accident.

Officers said a driver applied his brakes near Turner Drive to avoid Bynum while another motorist behind him veered off the road and up a hillside on Turner, lost control and rolled down about 30 feet into a power pole. Bynum was arrested when she lost control of her 1999 Chevrolet van on state Route 27.

In Whitman County Superior Court on Friday, she pleaded not guilty to one felony count for driving under the influence. Because Bynum has a history of DUI charges, she faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

She also pleaded not guilty to one felony hit-and-run charge for allegedly causing minor injuries to a passenger in one of the vehicles she sideswiped. That charge also carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

Additionally, she pleaded not guilty to one count of reckless driving, a misdemeanor that carries a maximum sentence of one year in prison.

Bynum was in custody when she appeared in court. It appeared she had recovered from the neck and back pain she was treated for at Pullman Regional Hospital following the accident.