Nodding-off driver runs down kids in Brentwood-Darlington

Published 12:00 am Wednesday, August 1, 2012

A sleepy driver led to serious pedestrian injuries just before 6 pm on Thursday, July 19, in the Brentwood-Darlington neighborhood.

According to investigators, a woman driving her car westbound on S.E. Flavel Street was observed to pass two cars on the right shoulder, and then drove up onto the curb.

“She hit a 5-year-old boy, and an 18-month-old girl in a stroller, who were waiting to cross the street with their mother,” reported Portland Police Bureau Public Information Officer Sgt. Peter Simpson.

The 5-year-old boy was taken to a Portland hospital with traumatic injuries; but the 18-month-old girl suffered only minor injuries and was treated at the scene by medical personnel.

The driver did remain at the scene.

Later that evening, Simpson said Traffic Division investigators had issued a citation for Careless Driving to 19-year-old Ashley Mason in connection with this crash.

“Mason fell asleep at the wheel just prior to striking the two children with her car, but showed no signs of impairment to Traffic investigators,” Simpson concluded.

The 5-year-old boy remains in serious condition at a Portland hospital.