A driver is facing felony assault and other charges after crashing into a motorcyclist on the Sunset Highway.
On Wednesday, June 26, 2024 at 3:05p.m., Portland Police officers assigned to Central Precinct were dispatched to a report of a crash involving a car and a motorcycle on eastbound Highway 26 at the Southwest Sylvan Road overpass. When they arrived, they encountered an overturned 2006 Subaru Legacy Outback and a downed 2016 Yamaha motorcycle. The motorcycle rider was seriously injured and was transported to the hospital by ambulance with non-life-threatening injuries. The Subaru driver, David J. Bumgardner, 60, of Beaverton, Oregon, did not report himself to be injured.
Members of the PPB Traffic Division and the Major Crimes Team responded to investigate the crash. Preliminary investigation revealed that the motorcycle rider was lane splitting (riding between lanes), which is not legal in Oregon. Bumgardner believed that the motorcycle hit his car and kept going. Bumgardner pulled onto the shoulder and pursued the motorcyclist at high speed. When the motorcyclist slowed for a lighted traffic control sign on the shoulder, Bumgardner was unable to stop, hit the motorcyclist, and his car overturned on top of the motorcyclist’s body. Passing motorists stopped to help and lifted the vehicle enough to free the motorcyclist.
Bumgardner was booked into the Multnomah County Detention Center on charges of Assault in the Second Degree, Assault in the Third Degree, Reckless Driving, and Recklessly Endangering Another Person.
The motorcyclist, Tha Ouk, 47, of Vancouver, Washington, was served a citation for Driving Uninsured, Careless Driving, Failure to Drive Within Lane, Driving without a Motorcycle Endorsement, and Failure to Register Motor Vehicle.
