Driver crashes leaving suspected Redmond drug house; 2 injured

(Update: Corrections, additions to narrative)

A Warm Springs woman speeding away from a suspected northwest Redmond drug house in a stolen car Tuesday morning crashed into an SUV and two parked cars, then ran but was caught hiding nearby, police said. She left behind two passengers in the car who suffered serious but non-life-threatening injuries, they added.

Shortly before 9 a.m., police were in the area of Northwest Hemlock Court and Fourth Street, watching a house known for suspected drug activity, said Lt. Curtis Chambers.

An officer saw a gray 2011 Dodge Avenger leave the area, and a fellow officer saw the car turn onto Greenwood Avenue from Fourth Street and speed away “at a very high speed,” Chambers said in a news release.

The officer did not immediately turn on lights or siren to stop the speeding car, driven by a woman later identified as Latanna Jackson, 31, of Warm Springs, the lieutenant said.

The car turned south onto Canal Boulevard, running a stop sign and leaving the officer’s view, at which point the officer turned on his lights and siren in attempt to catch up to the car after seeing the reckless driving behavior, Chambers said.

The officer was not in pursuit of the car due to its high speeds, Chambers said, but turned onto Canal Boulevard just in time to see, from several blocks away, the Dodge turn west onto Elm Avenue and crash into a GMC Yukon SUV that was heading south on Sixth Street.

The car spun out of control, colliding with two parked cars, and nearly hit a person sitting on the front step outside their apartment, Chambers said.

Jackson then ran away, leaving behind her two passengers, who police are not identifying but were taken by Redmond Fire medics to St. Charles Redmond with what Chambers called “severe but non-life-threatening injuries.” She was found by police a short time later, hiding near the corner of Sixth Street and Cedar Avenue.

Although investigators determined the car was an unreported stolen car out of Metolius, in Jefferson County, the passengers are not suspected of crimes at this time, the lieutenant said.

The three people in the Tahoe — a mother and two children, ages 5 and 1 — were not taken immediately to the hospital but left the scene with other family members Chambers said.

The intersection was closed for several hours while the crash was reconstructed, with the help of Oregon State Police.

Jackson was taken to the hospital and faces charges of felony hit and run (failure to perform the duties of a driver), reckless driving, six counts of recklessly endangering another person, DUII (controlled substance), methamphetamine possession and delivery, and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. She remained at the Redmond hospital late Tuesday, awaiting medical clearance before being taken to the Deschutes County Jail in Bend.

“Controlled substance addiction, use and sales is the driver behind a large portion of crimes committed in the Central Oregon region,” Chambers wrote in a news release.

“The residents of Northwest Hemlock Court are fed up with drug activity in their neighborhood,” he added. “The Redmond Police Department is also frustrated with repeated drug and property crime offenders who frequently do harm to our city.

“Your police department will work endlessly to make Redmond the safest community in Oregon,” Chambers added. “Please call non-emergency dispatch, 541-693-6911, to report known or suspected drug activity.”