Commissioner fighting careless driving ticket from semi crash

Stillwater County Commissioner Dennis Shupak was cited for careless driving last week after he allegedly ran into the back of a semi truck on I-90 near Park City.
He pleaded not guilty to the misdemeanor traffic offense Wednesday morning, Jan. 17, according to Stillwater County Justice Court.
The crash occurred at approximately 8:50 a.m. at mile marker 411 when the eastbound semi was passing a vehicle and the semi was struck from behind by a pickup truck driven by Shupak, said Montana Highway Patrol Trooper Aaron Freivalds.
Shupak’s bumper became hooked on the semi’s bumper “and the two vehicles became stuck together,” said Freivalds.
The driver of the semi was able to pull onto the shoulder of the road. Neither driver was injured.
It was this crash that Stillwater County Sheriff’s Deputy Ren Crain was conducting traffic control for when he was struck in his patrol truck by a vehicle.
There were multiple crashes throughout the day on slick roads and wintery conditions.