ADDISON COUNTY — Two young men were seriously injured on Thursday, Nov. 6, in a car crash on Weybridge Road in Weybridge. Vermont State Police are tentatively attributing the cause of the crash to distracted driving.
Police were called to the scene at a little before 11 a.m., where they spoke with the driver, Tyler Bougor, 26, of Middlebury. Police learned that Bougor had been driving a Subaru Impreza down Weybridge Road with his cousin, 17-year-old Caleb Wright of Hinesburg, when he allegedly looked down at his phone and then lost control of the car. Police said the vehicle veered off the road and overturned several times. Bougor and Wright, who were not wearing seat belts, were both ejected from the vehicle, according to authorities.
Bougor was taken to Porter Hospital for treatment of a broken shoulder, broken ribs, and a partially collapsed lung.
Wright was taken to Fletcher Allen Health Care for treatment of broken femurs in both legs.
Police do not believe that alcohol or drugs were a factor in the collision.
Bougor’s vehicle was totaled in the crash. Police said charges were pending.
In other recent activity, Vermont State Police:
•  On Nov. 3 at 10:56 p.m. responded to a one-car crash in Rutland on Route 7 in the area of Thomas Dairy. Police said 18-year-old Katerina Taylor of Forest Dale was driving a 1997 Subaru Legacy and went into a ditch, hit a set of mailboxes, and came to rest on a lawn adjacent to Route 7. Police said a contributing factor to the crash was that the operator of the vehicle was fatigued. Taylor suffered minor scrapes and bruises.
•  On Nov. 4 received a report that a wooden, homemade, single Adirondack chair was stolen from a Route 22A property in Addison sometime between noon on Nov. 3 and 5 p.m. on Nov. 4. The chair is painted red. Anyone with information in regard to this theft is asked to call the state police at 388-4919 or leave an anonymous tip online at www.vtips.info.
•  On Nov. 5 at 4 p.m. stopped a motor vehicle driven on Court Street in Middlebury by Devin Lowell, 22, of Brandon because the car didn’t have a front license plate and the driver didn’t have on a safety belt. As the state police attempted to stop the vehicle, police said Lowell switched seats with his girlfriend. Police said the vehicle was towed and the registration plates were seized; and they cited Lowell with driving with a criminally suspended license.
•  On Nov. 5 at 11:23 p.m. and at 11:32 p.m. received complaints about fraud in Hancock. State police did not provide additional information on these incidents before deadline.
•  On Nov. 5 at 11:59 p.m. stopped a vehicle driven by Robin L. Schulte, 34, of Lincoln on Lower Notch Road in Bristol for a traffic infraction. Police said Schulte appeared to be under the influence of intoxicants, and they took a preliminary sample of his breath, which showed his blood alcohol content at 0.149 percent. The legal BAC for driving is 0.08 percent. The trooper cited Schulte for driving under the influence, second offense.
•  On Nov. 8 at 1:23 a.m. stopped a vehicle driven by Chad C. Lamb, 35, of Middlebury on Route 2A in St. George for speeding. During the stop police found that Lamb had an active arrest warrant for escape. Police cited Lamb for driving with a criminally suspended license, fourth offense, and lodged him at the Chittenden County Correctional Center.
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State police at the New Haven Barracks, in conjunction with municipal and county law enforcement, will conduct checkpoints throughout Addison County during the last three weeks of November. This will be done in an effort to improve safety on the highways by removing drivers who are under the influence of alcohol or any drug that has impaired their ability to operate a motor vehicle.
The Vermont State Police would like to remind the public to buckle up and use designated drivers when drinking alcohol.