Motorcycle officer is hospitalized after collision with wrong-way driver

Tuesday, May 24, 2005 | 9:39 a.m.

A Metro Police motorcycle officer was hit head-on this morning by a driver who was heading the wrong way on a one-way street at McCarran International Airport, police said.

The officer, Paul Ferguson, 29, was in serious condition at University Medical Center this morning, Sgt. Chris Jones, Metro spokesman, said.

The collision occurred shortly after 1 a.m. Matthew Alexander, 21, of Las Vegas was driving a 1996 Nissan pickup truck westbound on Russell Road and told police he thought it would lead to Las Vegas Boulevard, Detective Doug Nutton said.

Once Alexander entered the airport area, traffic was channeled to a series of one-way streets. Alexander was heading north on the road used to return rental cars when he made a U-turn around a large median and got back onto the road he mistakenly thought was Russell, Nutton said.

But he was actually driving the wrong way toward the exit of the passenger drop-off area, police said.

Ferguson had just finished up a traffic stop on airport property and was using the exit of the passenger drop-off road to return to Swenson Street.

Ferguson spotted the Nissan coming toward him and tried to stop, but the two vehicles collided, Nutton said. Ferguson suffered serious injuries and was flown to University Medical Center.

Alexander and his passenger were not hurt. Police are still investigating and expect to send the case to the district attorney's office.

Ferguson, who has been with Metro since August 2001, was recently assigned to the motorcycle force, Jones said.