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Sen. Kevin Cramer's son involved in crash killing Mercer County deputy

The crash pushed the patrol vehicle back and into a Mercer County deputy, who was standing behind the vehicle, killing him, according to a report from the North Dakota Highway Patrol.

By Forum staff
December 06, 2023 at 10:38 PM

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MERCER COUNTY, N.D. — A Mercer County deputy died Wednesday, Dec. 6, after a patrol vehicle was pushed into him following a head-on collision with a stolen vehicle driven by U.S. Sen. Kevin Cramer's son.

A stolen vehicle from Bismarck was reported to the Bismarck Police Department on Wednesday, Dec. 6, according to a release from the North Dakota Highway Patrol (NDHP). The stolen 2017 black Chevy Tahoe was being driven by Ian Cramer, the 42-year-old son of Kevin Cramer, who confirmed it was his son in a personal statement.

The Mercer County Sheriff's Office located Ian Cramer and the stolen Tahoe roughly 75 miles northwest of Bismarck in Hazen, North Dakota, and approached him before he fled, beginning a pursuit, the report said. … In the midst of the pursuit, Ian Cramer's vehicle veered and crashed head-on into an unoccupied Mercer County Sheriff's Office patrol vehicle, according to the report. The vehicle was parked on a roadside approach with emergency lights flashing.

The crash pushed the patrol vehicle back and into a Mercer County deputy, who was standing behind the vehicle, killing him, according to the report. The deputy, who was not identified in the report, was deploying a tire deflation device in an effort to end the pursuit at the time of the crash, the report said.

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