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Trooper dies from crash injuries

by NICHOLAS LEDDEN/Daily Inter Lake
| March 28, 2009 1:00 AM

Haynes is third officer in 18 months killed in on-duty collisions

Montana Highway Patrol Trooper Mike Haynes of Kalispell has died from injuries suffered in an on-duty collision with a drunken driver south of Kalispell early Monday morning.

Haynes, 28, died just before 8:30 a.m. Friday at Kalispell Regional Medical Center, according to the Montana Attorney General's Office.

A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Tuesday at Christian Center Assembly of God Church in Kalispell, with a procession afterward to Glacier Memorial Gardens.

Haynes is the third trooper to be killed in the line of duty on Flathead Valley highways -all in head-on crashes - in the last 18 months.

"Mike Haynes lived his values, and loved his job and his family. You couldn't ask for a better trooper or man," said Montana Highway Patrol Col. Mike Tooley. "Montanans should be proud that someone of Mike's caliber was working for them. He will be missed."

Haynes, who was sworn in as a trooper with the Montana Highway Patrol in August 2006, is survived by his wife, Tawny; his two young children, Taryn and Elias; and his parents, John and Melody Haynes of Kalispell.

"The Highway Patrol has lost a brother and Montana has lost a hero," Montana Attorney General Steve Bullock said in a press release. "Our prayers tonight will be for Mike's young family. Today and this weekend, I encourage all Montanans to honor and pray for the men and women who work in these dangerous occupations to make our lives safer. We also need to reflect on the devastating consequences that come with drinking and driving."

According to investigators, Haynes was southbound on U.S. 93 north of Somers about 2:40 a.m. Monday when the driver of a Volkswagen traveling northbound in the southbound lanes struck the trooper's marked squad car head-on.

U.S. 93 at the collision site is a physically divided four-lane highway, according to the Montana Department of Justice.

The driver of the Volkswagen, 29-year-old Travis Vandersloot, was pronounced dead at the scene, Flathead County coroners said.

A full investigative report on the collision has yet to be released, but alcohol and high speeds on Vandersloot's part were major factors in the crash, Tooley said.

Montana Highway Patrol Capt. Clancy King said Vandersloot was traveling more than 100 mph and his blood tested above the legal limit for alcohol.

The collision occurred as Vandersloot came up out of a dip after navigating a curve in the road, King said. Haynes, who had just finished pulling around into the southbound lanes after a traffic stop in the northbound lanes, had no time to react, King said.

Haynes' death added to a grim toll for the Highway Patrol in recent years.

On Aug. 26, 2008, Trooper Evan Schneider, 29 died in a crash on U.S. 2 near Bad Rock Canyon. Schneider was hit head-on by a pickup truck that the vehicle he was pursuing forced into oncoming traffic.

On Oct. 9, 2007, Trooper David Graham, 36, died in a crash two miles north of Kalispell when a pickup truck driven by an inattentive motorist crossed a turn lane and hit him head-on.

Seven troopers have died in the line of duty in the Montana Highway Patrol's 74-year history.

Haynes is the fifth traffic fatality on Flathead County roads since March 19.

Reporter Nicholas Ledden can be reached at 758-4441 or by e-mail at nledden@dailyinterlake.com