A 30-year-old Southern Oregon man faces a vehicular homicide allegation in a Friday crash that killed his passenger.
Shawn M. Nelson of Sunny Valley, Ore., made a first appearance Monday in Clark County Superior Court on suspicion of vehicular homicide and driving under the influence. His bail was set at $100,000, Senior Deputy Prosecutor Anna Klein said in an email.
Officers were dispatched around 7:30 p.m. to the intersection of Southeast 164th Avenue and Southeast Fifth Street after a vehicle crashed into a concrete barrier.
Arriving officers located a silver Toyota Prius with Oregon license plates, according to a probable cause affidavit. The car had crashed into the 4-foot barrier on the northeast corner of the intersection. It had extensive front-end damage and its air bags had deployed, according to the affidavit.
Nelson was standing outside of the car. He identified himself as the driver, court records say. His passenger, identified in court records as Ciara Collins, was seated in the passenger’s seat.
Officers and medics were trying to speak with Collins when she became unresponsive and “quickly lost consciousness,” the affidavit says. She was taken to PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center, where she died from her injuries at 8:48 p.m., according to the affidavit.
Nelson told officers at the scene that he was feeling tired and weak, and he could not remember what happened prior to the crash, or if he fell asleep, court records say. He said he was withdrawing from opiate use and was currently taking Suboxone, which is prescribed to help quell drug cravings. He allegedly stated he had taken one of the pills earlier in the day.
A breath test for alcohol use registered zero, but an arresting officer noted his “pupils were dilated, his eyes were bloodshot, and his speech was lethargic and slurred,” the affidavit says.
At the Vancouver Police Department’s West Precinct, Nelson underwent a drug influence evaluation, court records say. The administering officer concluded Nelson was high on marijuana. Nelson also allegedly admitted to using marijuana a few hours before the crash.
Police obtained a warrant for a blood draw, but the results are pending, court records say.
An arraignment hearing in Nelson’s case is scheduled for May 7.
