Lab results raise question in fatal crash

SANDPOINT — A preliminary hearing remains pending for a Washington state woman accused of accidentally killing a cyclist participating in an interstate relay race last month.

A lengthy hearing was planned for Wednesday to determine if there is sufficient evidence to try Bowdeen Sui-lan Kahuhu on a felony vehicular manslaughter charge. The hearing was postponed again because the investigation into the accident remains incomplete, court records said.

Meanwhile, the prosecution and the defense jointly moved to release Kahuhu on her own recognizance because she has significant ties to the area and is not considered a flight risk. The stipulated motion also stated that “lab evidence raises a question about one of the theories of culpability in the case.”

Kahuhu had been held at the Bonner County Jail in lieu of $50,000.

Additional information on the lab evidence and its impact on the case was not available. Deputy Prosecutor Roger Hanlon does not comment on pending cases. Chief Deputy Public Defender Janet Whitney also declined to comment on the motion.

Kahuhu, 31, of Newport, was charged following the early-morning crash on Aug. 14. Idaho State Police said Kahuhu was headed north on Highway 41 north of Blanchard when she crossed into the southbound lane and went off the shoulder, where she hit a 17-year-old relay runner and her chaperone, Patricia Ann Lambie, a 46-year-old from Greenacres, Wash.

The teen survived the crash, but Lambie was killed. They were participating in the Spokane-to-Sandpoint relay and state police said both were wearing reflective gear.

The crash happened at about 6:30 a.m. near Roberts Lane.

Kahuhu, according to ISP, did not satisfactorily perform field sobriety tests, although her breath alcohol concentration was less than 0.04, below the legal limit of 0.08.

Kahuhu’s blood was drawn, but the test results have not been divulged.

Kahuhu told a state trooper she fell asleep at wheel, court records show.