A 48-year-old woman struck by a hit-and-run driver in East Portland has died in the hospital, nearly two weeks after officers found her with serious injuries at the intersection of Southeast 174th Avenue and Division Street. Lisa Straine died on August 22 from her injuries, and Portland police have since identified and interviewed the driver as the case moves toward prosecutors for review.
Officers were called to check on a woman near SE 174th and Division on August 9 and found Straine with serious injuries after she was struck by a driver who fled the scene, according to KATU. Police are tracking the case under number 26-231689. Despite having identified and interviewed the driver, Portland police have referred the case to the Multnomah County District Attorney's Office for review, and investigators are still asking anyone with information who has not yet spoken with them to come forward.
Under Oregon law, that referral matters. Because Straine died from her injuries, the driver who left the scene now faces exposure under Oregon Revised Statute 811.705, which elevates failure to perform the duties of a driver to an injured person to a Class B felony when a collision results in serious injury or death, according to Oregon law. A conviction under that statute can carry state prison time, fines up to $125,000, and mandatory license suspension, per Southwell Law. Whether the Multnomah County DA's office will pursue that felony charge, or any additional counts, remains an open question now that the case file has landed with prosecutors.
A Corridor Long Known For Danger
The crash site sits at the eastern edge of a major safety overhaul. SE 174th and Division marks the boundary of the Portland Bureau of Transportation's $11 million Outer Division Safety Project, which rebuilt the corridor between SE 80th and 174th avenues with raised medians and protected bike lanes from 2021 to early 2023, according to the Portland Bureau of Transportation. Before that redesign, outer Division Street was one of the city's most dangerous High Crash Network corridors, logging 22 traffic fatalities and more than 100 serious injuries over a single decade, PBOT has reported.
Oregon's crosswalk law also shapes how investigators and prosecutors will view driver responsibility here. Under ORS 811.028, every intersection functions as a legal crosswalk whether marked or not, meaning drivers must yield and remain stopped for pedestrians crossing in an adjacent lane, per PBOT's own guidance.
Citywide Numbers Show Progress, But Gaps Remain
Straine's death arrives even as Portland's broader traffic safety numbers have been trending downward. Citywide traffic fatalities fell for a second consecutive year in 2025, dropping to 39 deaths, a 38% decrease from the prior four-year average, PBOT reported in March. East Portland saw an even sharper drop, with traffic fatalities falling 56% to 11 deaths in 2025, the first time since 2018 that the area recorded fewer than 20 deaths in a single year.
Fatal hit-and-run crashes citywide also fell to four in 2025, their lowest level since before the pandemic, according to data reported by BikePortland. Still, hit-and-run collisions overall rose 51% between 2020 and 2024 compared to the previous five years, accounting for 17% of all pedestrian fatalities and serious injuries in Portland, according to Hoodline's earlier reporting on the trend. Straine's case, and the driver's decision to flee rather than remain and render aid as Oregon law requires, fits into that longer pattern even as the newest citywide figures point in a more hopeful direction.
What Happens Next
Now that Portland police have referred the case, prosecutors with the Multnomah County District Attorney's Office will review it for potential felony charges and can coordinate with the office's Victims Assistance Program to support Straine's family through the court process, according to the City of Portland. No charges have been announced against the driver as of this reporting.
Police are still asking anyone with information about the crash, particularly people who have not already spoken with investigators, to contact [email protected], attention traffic division, and to reference case number 26-231689. The case follows a separate fatal pedestrian crash days earlier on SE Division, underscoring how the corridor, even after years of safety investment, continues to draw scrutiny from residents and city officials alike.
