A Portland man died after his motorcycle left the roadway and hit trees as he fled a traffic stop east of Battle Ground, according to law enforcement.
At about 11:45 p.m. on Feb. 7, officers from Battle Ground attempted a traffic stop of a motorcycle near the intersection of Northeast 167th Avenue and Northeast 219th Street, a release from the Clark County Sheriff’s Office stated. The motorcyclist turned north onto Northeast 167th Avenue and reportedly fled at a high rate of speed, which led the officer to end the stop.
The motorcyclist continued north before leaving the roadway near the 22600 block of Northeast 167th Avenue, before he collided with several trees, the release stated. The Battle Ground officer found the motorcyclist, who was later identified as William Linson, of Portland, in a ravine, leading the officer to call a “code 3” ambulance request.
American Medical Response and Clark County Fire District 3 personnel responded to the scene to help Linson. He was taken by ambulance to a local hospital with critical injuries, the release stated. On Feb. 10, the sheriff’s office learned Linson died at the hospital.
The investigation remains active. Those who witnessed it or have any information about the crash are asked to contact sheriff’s traffic detective Patrick Spak at 564-397-4597.
