Motorcyclist Killed in Bend Collision; Operator Hospitalized, Potential Charges Pending
BEND, Ore. — A 19-year-old passenger was killed Friday evening in a head-on collision between a speeding motorcycle and an SUV at SE Second Street and Miller Avenue.
Malachi Longstroth, a Redmond resident, died at the scene around 6:30 p.m., according to Bend Police Communications Manager Sheila Miller. The motorcycle operator, a 20-year-old Bend resident, was hospitalized with serious injuries.
Authorities report the motorcycle was traveling north on Second Street at a high rate of speed when it collided with a southbound Subaru Crosstrek, driven by a 25-year-old Bend man attempting to turn east on Miller Avenue. The impact threw both Longstroth and the motorcycle operator.
First responders performed life-saving measures on the motorcyclist at the scene, including CPR and use of an automated external defibrillator. The motorcyclist was transported to St. Charles Bend for further treatment.
The Subaru driver was uninjured and is cooperating with the ongoing investigation. A reconstruction team closed Second Street for approximately three hours to assess the scene.
“Excessive speed on the part of the motorcycle is considered a primary factor in this case,” Miller stated. The investigation will be submitted to the Deschutes County District Attorney’s Office for potential charges against the motorcycle operator.
Both riders were wearing helmets at the time of the crash. The speed limit on that section of Second Street is 30 mph. Authorities continue to investigate the exact speed of the motorcycle.