An unidentified Arizona man was both struck by a vehicle and stabbed Tuesday morning, Oct. 11, near milepost 20 on Quartzville Road near Sweet Home.
According to the Linn County Sheriff Michelle Duncan, the Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call at around 6:08 a.m. from a trucking dispatch center, which reported that a truck operator had radioed with news of the incident.
Deputies responded to the scene, where the operator flagged them down and provided additional details. The victim, a 36-year-old male transient, was found and transported to Samaritan Lebanon Community Hospital, then taken by Life Flight to the Good Samaritan Regional Center in Corvallis. Although he suffered life-threatening injuries, the Sheriff’s Office said, he was expected to survive.
Investigators determined that the man traveled to the Quartzville area with a group of people that included John Kersey, a 72-year-old transient from Albany. The men had allegedly gotten into an argument before Kersey got into a vehicle and rammed the victim, then jumped out and stabbed him several times. According to the Sheriff’s Office, no one at the campsite provided medical attention to the injured man, who was able to walk 250 feet before the truck operator found him.
Kersey was subsequently arrested and lodged at the Linn County Jail for first-degree assault.
The investigation is continuing, with more possible charges pending.