Livingston man killed, deputies hurt in head-on crash
Polk County Enterprise, March 2007

LIVINGSTON - A chase Tuesday afternoon ended with one person dead and four Polk County sheriff's deputies injured, one seriously. The incident started shortly before 4:35 p.m. when a witness reported a Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck traveling north in the southbound lanes on Hwy. 146, according to Sheriff Kenneth Hammack.

The Silverado, driven by 45-year-old Michael Wayne Gaston of Livingston, side-swiped one patrol car, struck a second patrol car in the rear and collided head-on with a patrol pickup truck.

Gaston died from injuries suffered in the crash, Hammack said. Deputy James Phillip Waller, 53, is recovering from a femur fracture at Memorial Hermann Hospital. Three other deputies suffered minor injuries but returned to duty Wednesday.

See the Enterprise print edition for details.