Portland driver flees deputies, crashes in Bend amid overdose chaos

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- A 21-year-old Portland man faces multiple charges after a Sunday morning chase ended in a crash and suspected overdose.

At 7:36 a.m., Deschutes County Sheriff’s deputies responded to reports of an impaired driver weaving southbound on U.S. Highway 97 toward Bend. They spotted Jaiden Robert Telford’s Ford F-350 sideswipe the median on the Bend Parkway near Empire Avenue and attempted a traffic stop. Telford fled at high speed, prompting deputies to lose sight of him.

Around 8:05 a.m., Bend Police arrived at a crash scene near NE Eighth Street and Bennington Lane. Officers identified Telford’s stolen truck – reported out of Multnomah County – and found him passed out behind the wheel. Suspecting an overdose, they administered multiple doses of Narcan before medics transported him to St. Charles Bend.

The other driver escaped injury. NE Eighth Street briefly closed during the response, with Oregon State Police assisting.

Telford now faces charges of DUII, Attempt to Elude, and Reckless Driving.