Man charged in Eagle Point fatal crash – Medford News, Weather, Sports, Breaking News

Mail Tribune (Medford, OR — Wayback)

2021-06-10

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Man charged in Eagle Point fatal crash By Nick Morgan Updated: Jun 10, 2021 03:23 PM A A A Gold Hill man faces a vehicular homicide charge accusing him of being under the influence of methamphetamine during a May 20 fatal crash. Robert Linn Taylor, 50, is held in the Jackson County Jail on manslaughter, impaired driving and reckless driving charges accusing him of killing Stephen Johnson in a crash in the Eagle Point area near Takelma County Park. At 7:23 a.m. May 20, Taylor was driving a 1999 Ford F-350 pickup when he crossed the center double line and collided head-on into another pickup on Rogue River Drive near the county park, according to a press release issued Thursday by Jackson County Sheriff’s Office. Taylor sustained serious injuries in the crash and was hospitalized at Rogue Regional Medical Center, according to a Facebook post about the crash from the sheriff’s office. Johnson died at the scene. Rogue River Drive was closed for at least five hours May 20 as the sheriff’s office and the Serious Traffic Accident Reconstruction Team investigated. Further details about the crash were sealed in Jackson County Circuit Court records . Taylor was arrested Wednesday, jail records show, and was slated to make his initial court appearance Thursday afternoon. Taylor was held in jail Thursday on $110,000 bail. Court records show that at the time of the crash, Taylor was in a conditional discharge program surrounding prior convictions for delivering methamphetamine and altering or obliterating a firearm ID number. The felony convictions stem from a February 2019 traffic stop. During the stop, Central Point police reportedly observed a meth bubble pipe “in plain view” and found more than five grams of meth, a digital scale, small zip-close baggies and four cellphones, along with a .45-caliber ACP Hi-Point pistol, records show. Reach reporter Nick Morgan at 541-776-4471 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @MTCrimeBeat.