OSP IDs Hwy. 97 crash victims; sheriff talks of chase policies

Oregon State Police on Wednesday identified three victims of a deadly head-on crash Tuesday night on Highway 97 north of La Pine, which came minutes after a high-speed pursuit was called off. Meanwhile, Deschutes County Sheriff Shane Nelson spoke of his agency’s pursuit policies.

Brett M. Young, 47, of La Pine, who OSP said was a fugitive from Nevada, fled police at up to 130 mph on Highway 97 Tuesday night. The pursuit was called off minutes before his pickup crashed into a car head-on north of La Pine, killing him and two Bend residents, Oregon State Police said.

Preliminary information indicates a sheriff’s deputy tried to pull over a 2005 Dodge Ram SRT-10 pickup truck in Bend when it failed to yield, said OSP Lt. Bill Fugate.

The driver of the pickup, later identified as Young, reportedly hit speeds of 130 mph before the deputy discontinued the pursuit. It was later learned he was a fugitive from Nevada for felon in possession of a firearm.

Nelson said Wednesday deputies constantly weigh the benefits of apprehending a suspect and the risk of the pursuit.

“Almost simultaneously, the supervisor had discontinued the pursuit based on the speeds that were being reported,” Nelson said. “At that same time, the deputy was preparing to discontinue the pursuit, because they were reaching a stretch of highway where he felt was no longer worth it.”

About five minutes later, Young’s pickup was seen passing other vehicles southbound on Highway 97 in a no-passing zone, Fugate said.

The pickup soon struck a northbound 1994 Ford Escort head-on. Young died at the scene, as did the car’s driver, Steven L. Clink, 33, and Clink’s passenger, Pamela James, 50, both of Bend, Fugate said.

Fugate said OSP is leading the ongoing investigation and more information will be released as available.

The crash occurred around 8:50 p.m. in the area of milepost 159, about six miles north of the city of La Pine, near State Recreation Road.

Detours were in place using Vandevert Road to the north and Huntington Road to the south. The highway reopened shortly before 1:30 a.m., ODOT reported.

Police scanner reports indicated a sheriff’s deputy had been pursuing the pickup truck heading south on Highway 97 from the south end of Bend, past Lava Butte, starting around 8:40 p.m.

Speeds reportedly reached 130 mph before the call was made to discontinue the pursuit around 8:46 p.m., after discussion of possibly using “spike strips” to stop the fleeing vehicle.

“Based on speed, let’s discontinue the pursuit,” a male officer is heard saying, followed by one saying he was “slowing down now.”

But at 8:50 p.m. came a female officer’s voice: “He’s going to hit somebody head-on!”

And a second or two later, she said: “He just hit somebody head-on, and we have flames!”

OSP was assisted in the crash investigation by the sheriff’s office, La Pine Rural Fire District, ODOT and Sunriver police.

James was in the news earlier this year, when she was struck and critically injured while crossing the street in Bend at Northeast Division Street and Revere Avenue.

The crash left her in a coma for two weeks, and she talked with NewsChannel 21”s Samantha O’Connor in March, urging other pedestrians to wear light or reflective gear and to use crosswalks, even if in a hurry.

“They say that I’m actually a miracle, that I even made it the first 48 hours,” she said.