Portland, Oregon – This morning at 1:21 a.m., an officer patrolling the Powellhurst – Gilbert Neighborhood was driving northbound on Southeast 112th Avenue from Powell Boulevard when he spotted a vehicle traveling southbound towards him at a high rate of speed.

As the vehicle passed, the officer saw that it was a black 1993 Chevrolet Corvette that the officer had taken a stolen car report on earlier in the evening.

The officer began to turn around to initiate a traffic stop but the driver of the Corvette immediately lost control of the car as it crossed Powell Boulevard. The Corvette struck a parked Toyota truck on the east side of SE 112th Avenue, then crashed through a wooden fence and continued through the front yard of a residence, ultimately hitting a Ford Explorer that was parked in the driveway. The Corvette continued moving, now backwards, and hit a large cargo van parked in the side yard of another residence. The impact moved this large van about 5 feet, pushing it into a Buick parked in the driveway of this residence, where the Corvette finally stopped.

Additional officers arrived in the area along with medical personnel who determined that the driver was deceased. The driver, 35-year-old male, had warrants for burglary and a parole violation and had been convicted of 7 felony and 3 misdemeanor crimes, including Unlawful Use of a Motor Vehicle (stolen car) and Attempt to Elude.

The deceased man’s identity will be released after family has been notified.

The Portland Police Bureau Traffic Division’s Major Crash Team conducted an investigation into the crash.

The intersection of Southeast 112th Avenue and Powell Boulevard was shut down for several hours in all directions as investigators processed the crash scene. The intersection was reopened at approximately 5:00 a.m.

This was the 4th traffic fatality in the past week and the 28th in 2011.

Source: Portland Police Bureau

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