OSP: Bend man may face charges in Hwy. 20 crash

A Bend man faces several possible charges, including DUII-drugs and assault, after a crash of two pickup trucks on Highway 20 west of Santiam Pass Saturday afternoon, Oregon State Police reported.

Troopers said the crash occurred around 2:45 p.m. on Saturday near milepost 78 in Linn County.

Lynn Ray Culwell, 58, of Bend, was heading east in a black Toyota pickup when his truck crossed the center line and struck a westbound maroon Ford F-150 driven by Jerry Charles Thompson, 46, of Siletz.

Thompson was flown by Life Flight helicopter to St. Charles Bend, where a house supervisor said he was in fair condition Monday.

Culwell was taken by ambulance to the Bend hospital and treated for minor injuries, troopers said.

Culwell “showed signs of impairment and admitted to using meth the day prior,” Senior Trooper Richard Branin reported in a log entry. A search warrant was obtained for blood and urine tests and served that evening, he wrote.

Reports were referred to the Linn County District Attorney’s Office for possible charges of DUII-controlled substances, third-degree assault, reckless driving and driving with a suspended license, troopers said.