Detectives seek witnesses to explain mysterious injuries on woman found in roadway

Spokane Valley investigators are trying to piece together what led to a woman lying unconscious and injured in the roadway, despite there being no signs she was struck by a car.

Tuesday at approximately 11:45 p.m., a caller reported finding a woman on Park Road, north of Trent Avenue, according to a Spokane County Sheriff’s Office news release.

Spokane Valley deputies responded and found a woman who appeared to be in her late 50s unresponsive, with no apparent signs of a serious injury.

The woman was having “extreme difficulties” breathing and had a very weak pulse. She was transported to a local hospital where doctors determined she was highly intoxicated and had several unexplained fractures, the release said. As of Thursday, she was in critical condition and unable to provide information about what happened to her.

Spokane Valley investigators are working to determine how she was injured and how she ended up in the road, the release said.

Investigators know she left a local tavern around 11:30 p.m., and the caller found her in the roadway about 15 minutes later. Without obvious signs of blunt-force trauma usually present after being struck by a vehicle, detectives are considering any possibility, according to the release.

“Even if you don’t think you observed anything unusual or of note,” the release said, deputies are asking anyone in the area of Park Road, between Trent and Montgomery avenues, between 11:30 p.m. and 11:45 p.m., to call Cpl.Jeff Welton at (509) 477-3237.