Judge orders trial in 2014 hit-and-run

A trial has been ordered for the alleged driver of a car involved in an 2014 hit-and-run accident which seriously injured a Pawhuska bicyclist.

Kevin Kurtis Carter, Jr., was bound over for trial in Osage County District Court following a June 23 preliminary hearing before Special Judge Stuart Tate. Carter, 19, is charged with leaving scene of an injury accident, which is a felony, and a misdemeanor count of reckless driving.

The charges were filed more than a month after 33-year-old Dustin Allen Green was hurt while riding a bicycle on East Main Street shortly before midnight on Oct. 16, 2014. According to police reports, Green was headed west on the city thoroughfare (also designated as U.S. Highway 60) when he was struck by an eastbound automobile near the Stoneridge Lane intersection.

Green was knocked unconscious and sustained a severely fractured leg in the mishap. The car — which was identified as being dark in color — reportedly went into the wrong lane of traffic while travelling at a speed “that was greater than was reasonable and proper” and was then driven from the scene of the collision.

A former Pawhuskan who currently resides in Tulsa, Carter was identified as the driver of a car that moments earlier had been seen racing another car eastbound on Main from near the junction of Lynn Avenue. Carter was taken into custody over a month after the charges were filed. A few days later, he was released on a $5,000 bond.

Two witnesses who testified at the hearing claimed to be cousins of Carter. They both said they had seen the defendant speeding east on Main seconds before hearing tires screeching and a loud crash. A third witness said as he drove the other two toward the scene of the presumed accident, he did not see either of the aforementioned cars.

Green, who reportedly endured several operations as a result of his injuries, testified at the hearing.

Carter is due back in court Aug. 24. He is scheduled for a 1:30 p.m. arraignment before Associate District Judge B. David Gambill.