No citation after wreck hurts Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper Christopher Simpson

No citation after wreck hurts Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper Christopher Simpson
Lawman had stopped a van
BY RHETT MORGAN - Tulsa World
Published: March 24, 2009Buzz up!

CLAREMORE — A veteran Oklahoma Highway Patrol trooper remained hospitalized Monday in Tulsa after he was injured Sunday in a three-vehicle crash on the Will Rogers Turnpike, a hospital spokeswoman said.

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Trooper Christopher C. Simpson, 36, of Inola was in good condition at St. John Medical Center, spokeswoman Joy McGill said. Patrol Lt. George Brown declined to detail the extent of injuries to Simpson, who was admitted to the hospital for observation of a head injury, the crash report stated.

Simpson, a patrol veteran of about 10 years, was conducting a traffic stop on a van on the shoulder of the westbound lanes of Interstate 44, roughly three miles east of the Claremore exit. Troopers said Simpson was parked behind the van with his emergency lights activated when his vehicle was struck from behind by a pickup driven by Lance Y. Isa, 46, of Broken Arrow.

Isa’s vehicle left the road after he reached down to attend to a cramped calf muscle, according to a highway patrol report. After striking the trooper’s car, the truck came to rest on its top in a ditch.

The impact pushed Simpson’s cruiser into the van and then into a ditch, the patrol report stated.


DA will decide
Isa, who was carrying three passengers, wasn’t cited at the scene, though inattention was listed as the cause of the crash.
Once the complete collision report is completed, the highway patrol will forward it to the Rogers County district attorney’s office, which will decide whether any charge will be filed, Brown said.

Isa and the three passengers in the pickup were treated at St. Francis Hospital in Tulsa and released. The van was occupied by 15 people, according to the crash report.

All five of the van’s occupants who were injured, including driver Sandra Givens, 35, of Broken Arrow were treated at SouthCrest Hospital and released, troopers said.

Everyone in all three vehicles was wearing a seat belt, the patrol said.