Idaho Law Blog

On May 3^rd, two vehicles collided approximately one mile west of the Lochsa Lodge. The accident took place at mile post 161 on US Highway 12, at about 11:58 a.m., in Idaho County, Idaho.

The first vehicle, a 2021 International box truck, was being driven westbound by a 60-year-old man from Des Moines, Washington. As he traveled, he came upon a curve, and failed to maintain his lane. The driver veered over the center line and into oncoming traffic. He collided head on with the second vehicle, a 2023 Hyundai Palisade, being driven by a 59-year-old man with a 54-year-old female passenger, both from Middleton, Idaho.

The 54-year-old female passenger of the Hyundai succumbed to her injuries at the scene. The other individuals did not receive any substantial injuries. All three individuals were wearing safety restraints at the time of the accident.

Spirit Lake, Idaho- Idaho State Police are continuing to investigate a two-vehicle collision that took place on May 2^nd, 2025. The crash involved a 2022 Honda touring motorcycle, and a 2014 Subaru SUV, and occurred around 11:40 p.m. on State Highway 54.

At the time of the accident, the Honda, driven by a 61-year-old woman, was traveling westbound on SH 54. As she came upon the intersection of SH 54 and Coeur d’Alene Dr, she was struck by the Subaru. The Subaru was being driven by a 23-year-old male as it traveled eastbound. The vehicle was attempting to make a left turn onto the connecting street, when the driver failed to yield to the oncoming motorcycle, causing a collision.

The driver of the Honda motorcycle was wearing a helmet at the time of the accident; however, she succumbed to her injuries shortly after. The driver of the Subaru was wearing a seatbelt and remained uninjured.

On Thursday, May 1^st, a 2021 black Chevy Silverado and a Mercedes tour bus collided on US Highway 20. The accident took place at 7:15 p.m. as the tour bus, carrying foreign tourists, headed to Yellowstone National Park. Idaho State Police, Fremont County Coroner’s Office, Ada County Coroner’s office and Idaho State Forensic Service are continuing to investigate this collision.

At the time of the accident, the tour bus was headed East. The bus carried 14 people total, including the driver, a 30-year-old man who was licensed in California. Of the other passengers, 12 were tourists from China, and one was visiting from Italy. As they traveled, the other vehicle, the Chevy, crossed over the center line and collided with the van. Little information is provided regarding what occurred after the initial impact.

Following the accident, all 14 passengers on the bus and the driver of the truck, a 25-year-old man from Humble, Texas, were transported to hospitals to receive medical treatment. Three individuals were transported via life flight, two were flown to a hospital in Idaho Falls, and one with more severe injuries was taken to Bozeman, Montana. All other individuals were taken to local hospitals via ground ambulance. A Sheriff from Fremont County arrived just in time to assist in getting passengers off the van before it caught fire.

On Thursday, April 24^th, two vehicles collided as they came upon slowed traffic on I15. The accident took place just north of Pocatello at milepost 74, at approximately 1:55 p.m.

At the time of the accident, two vehicles, a 2019 Audi A6 and a 2000 Subaru Legacy, were both traveling southbound on I15. The Audi, driven by a 60-year-old man with a 59-year-old female passenger both from Idaho Falls, came upon the traffic and slowed to a stop. The Subaru, driven by a 48-year-old man from Inkom, came upon the slowed traffic and failed to stop in time, striking the back of the Audi.

The driver of the Subaru was badly injured and passed away at the scene. Reports include that he did not have a seatbelt on at the time of the accident. Both the driver and passenger of the Audi were wearing safety restraints, and were both taken to a nearby hospital to receive treatment for their injuries.

Idaho State Police are continuing to investigate a collision that took place on April 20^th, at 8:29 p.m. The crash involved two vehicles, who were traveling opposite directions on West Road, when they collided head-on.

The first vehicle, a 2006 Pontiac G6, was being driven westbound by a 29-year-old man from Jerome. As he approached the intersection of West Rd. and N 500 W, he failed to maintain his lane, crossing over the center line and veering into the oncoming eastbound traffic. His vehicle collided directly with the second vehicle, a 2018 Chevrolet Equinox, which was being driven by a 72-year-old man from Jerome. The Equinox also had two passengers, a 70-year-old man from Jerome and a 20-year-old man from Griffith, Indiana.

Following the accident, the driver of the Chevy, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was fatally wounded and passed away. The other two passengers as well as the driver of the Pontiac were all wearing seatbelts, and all three individuals were transported to a local hospital to have their injuries checked and treated.

On April 20^th at approximately 6:15, a single motorcycle left the roadway and crashed. The accident took place in Ada County on SH21, just south of Arrow Rock Rd, at milepost 16.

At the time of the accident, the motorcycle, a 2009 Kawasaki ZG1400, was traveling northbound. As they passed mile 16, the driver, a 52-year-old man from Boise, failed to navigate a curve. He and his 46-year-old female passenger collided with the right concrete barrier and came to a stop just out of the lanes.

Both the driver and the passenger sustained major injuries. The driver was transported to a local hospital by ground ambulance, and the passenger was life-flighted to a larger hospital.

Idaho State Police are continuing to investigate a three-vehicle collision that occurred on Interstate 15 on April 19^th, 2025. The accident was caused by a standstill in traffic on the freeway while authorities cleared a road hazard. It took place on the north side of I15 at about 7:37 a.m.

Two vehicles, a black 2019 Honda Accord in front and a grey 2015 Ford Explorer behind, were stopped waiting for traffic to clear when the third vehicle, a 2009 Peterbuilt semi failed to stop and crashed into them. The 30-year-old male driver of the Honda, the 35-year-old female driver of the Ford and her juvenile passenger, and the 48-year-old male driver of the semi were all wearing seatbelts. No report is given on their condition at this time.

Unfortunately, according to Idaho Transportation Department’s crash report in 2023, 17% of all motor vehicle crashes were related to or caused by distracted driving. Of that 17%, 48 people were killed because of these accidents. Idaho Department of Transportation says that of these crashes, “failing to yield” is the largest contributing cause. Multiple vehicle crashes accounted for 72% of all motor vehicle crashes in 2023, leaving a total of 19,807 multi-vehicle crashes.

On April 14^th at 7:10 p.m., a single vehicle traveling westbound on I-84 left the roadway and crashed. The accident took place in Oneida County, south of Juniper, near mile 265. The single vehicle, a red 1997 Ford Explorer, was being driven by a 21-year-old man from Clarkston, WA, with a 21-year-old male passenger from Lewiston, ID.

As they traveled west, the rear left tire became damaged and separated from the vehicle. Without a tire, the driver was not able to control the vehicle, causing it to leave the roadway, before rolling and coming to a stop in the median.

The driver of the vehicle did not sustain any major injuries, and was not wearing a seat belt at the time. The passenger was wearing a seat belt, and was injured in the accident. He was transported to a local hospital to receive treatment.

Idaho State Police are continuing to investigate a three vehicle collision that occurred on April 14^th. The crash took place on US 95 near milepost 495, just before noon. A blue Honda Odyssey van, a blue Chevrolet GMT-400 pickup, and a Honda Ridgeline were all involved.

At the time of the accident, the first vehicle, the Honda Odyssey driven by a 33-year-old man from Spokane, Washington, was traveling southbound. As he traveled, he failed to slow in time to avoid the vehicle in front of him, the Chevrolet, driven by a 50-year-old man from Naples with a juvenile passenger. After being rear ended, the Chevy was forced into the northbound traffic, colliding with the Honda Ridgeline, driven by a 79-year-old man with a 72-year-old female passenger, both from Coeur d’Alene. Following the collision, both the Ridgeline and the Chevy caught fire.

The 50-year-old driver of the Chevy was fatally wounded and passed away at the scene. The juvenile passenger was transported via life flight to a large hospital. The female passenger of the Ridgeline was transported to a local hospital by ground ambulance. No report is given regarding the other individuals involved.

On April 12^th, 2024, two juveniles were traveling northbound when they exited the roadway and crashed. The crash took place at 1:52 p.m. on Interstate 15, near milepost 114.

At the time of the accident, the juveniles were traveling in a 2000 Mercury Cougar. When they reached mile 114 just outside of Idaho Falls, the driver veered and left the roadway. The vehicle entered the median where it rolled, before it entered the southbound side and came to rest in the lanes.

The driver was fatally injured and passed immediately. The passenger was transported to a local hospital to be checked and treated. Both individuals were wearing seatbelts at the time of the accident.