Deputy Badly Hurt When Bike Hits Car

An Orange County sheriff’s deputy was thrown from his motorcycle and critically injured Friday after colliding with a car in a Mission Viejo intersection.

Matthew Davis, 38, a 16-year veteran of the department, was taken to Mission Hospital Regional Medical Center.

He was reported in grave condition and was undergoing surgery for major head trauma, said department spokesman Jim Amormino.

Davis is married and has three young children, Amormino said.

Authorities said Davis was southbound behind another vehicle on Marguerite Parkway at La Sierra Drive about 12:30 p.m. when he collided with a Saturn turning left from eastbound La Sierra onto northbound Marguerite.

The impact threw the officer off his bike and lofted him about 20 feet into a traffic sign, Amormino said.

The motorcycle kept going for about 100 feet before jumping a center divider and stopping in the oncoming lane.

The driver of the Saturn--a 17-year-old girl--had come to a full stop at a stop sign before starting her left turn, Amormino said.

Davis did not have a stop sign, Amormino said.

Amormino said the driver may not have seen the motorcycle because of the vehicle that preceded it into the intersection.

“She definitely stopped,” he said. “We’re not sure what charges, if any, will be filed.”

The girl--whose name was not released because of her age--was not injured, Amormino said.

The accident remains under investigation.