Alcohol may have been a factor in car-motor trike crash

A Frazee woman has been charged in Becker County District Court with felony criminal vehicular operation.

According to court records, on the evening of Tuesday, July 25, law enforcement received a report of a car that struck a motorcycle on a Detroit Lakes frontage road and left the scene.

Responding officers found a woman who had been driving a three-wheeled motorcycle sitting on the roadside next to her damaged vehicle. The victim was bleeding profusely from the back of her head. 

The woman claimed she was driving eastbound on the frontage road when a westbound car approached her. She stated she was blinded by headlights and the oncoming car swerved into her lane causing the collision.

The injured woman was treated by emergency medical services and transported to the hospital, prior to being airlifted to Fargo for further treatment. The following day her injuries were reported as having suffered a brain bleed and lacerations to her head, a fractured tibia and toes that will require surgery.

A citizen witnessed the July 25 crash and followed the suspect vehicle, a silver Chevrolet Impala registered to Laura Lee Conger, 33, of Frazee. The citizen reported the vehicle was parked on Woodrow Avenue behind Burger King.

Conger admitted to police the damaged Impala was hers, and said she “hit a curb hard” near Burger King, then later admitted to driving further east on the frontage road.

Conger showed signs of intoxication while speaking to officers on the scene and admitted to drinking a half-bottle of wine. 

Preliminary blood test results were .21 percent. A warrant was obtained for a blood draw at a Detroit Lakes hospital and was submitted to the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.

The legal limit of .08 percent.

Conger posted a $15,000 bond on Thursday, July 27, and was released under conditions: no drugs or alcohol, avoiding bars and liquor stores, and using an alcohol monitor.

Conger’s next court appearance is Monday, Oct. 9 in Becker County District Court.