A Vancouver truck driver escaped criminal charges after he allegedly ran a red light and hit two other vehicles in Portland, fatally injuring one driver more than two months ago.
A Multnomah County grand jury declined last week to issue criminal charges against Ibrahim Halilovic, 35, according to a bulletin from the Portland Police Bureau.
The bulletin said Halilovic, on the morning of Nov. 25, had been driving a 2008 Volvo tractor-trailer pulling a tank trailer east on Columbia Boulevard when he went through a red light faster than the speed limit.
The big rig collided with a 2010 Toyota 4Runner driven by Roderick Hawthorne, 64, that had been traveling north on Northeast 47th Avenue.
The truck then hit a 1996 Chevrolet Blazer driven by Willow Michelle Thorpe, 26, that had been stopped on Columbia facing west.
Thorpe, who lived in Happy Valley, Ore., was killed in the crash, the police bulletin said.
Halilovic stopped and cooperated with investigators, as did Hawthorne, a Portland resident. Several witnesses also spoke with officers.
Alcohol was not a factor in the crash, said police Sgt. Pete Simpson.
Portland’s Major Crash Team investigated.
After the grand jury’s decision, police ticketed Halilovic for alleged traffic violations: careless driving, driving with a suspended license and failure to obey a traffic control device.
John Branton: 360-735-4513 or john.branton@columbian.com.
