SANDPOINT — A Bonner County sheriff’s deputy was cited for an infraction after allegedly sideswiping another motorist on the north end of the U.S. Highway 95 Long Bridge earlier this month.

Deputy Steven M. Carl is accused of violating the rules of the road by driving an authorized police vehicle without due regard for safety of all persons using the highway, according to Bonner County Magistrate Court documents.

Idaho State Police did not identify Carl following the Oct. 12 crash. The agency said a deputy was responding to a call for service with lights and sirens when he sideswiped a Suzuki Grand Vitara containing two adults and three children with his patrol vehicle, a Chevrolet Tahoe. The deputy’s sport utility vehicle struck a concrete barrier and came to rest sideways and blocking both lanes of the highway.

The driver of the compact SUV Christopher J. Estes, a 30-year-old Sagle resident, and a passenger, 28-year-old Sandpoint resident Samantha A. Lawson, were wearing seatbelts, state police said. The three juveniles were also in safety restraints, while Carl was not, according to ISP.

Carl was responding a report of a fight on Old House Road near Athol at approximately 10:46 p.m., according to the Bonner Dispatch call log.

A member of Lawson’s family sent a direct message over Facebook praising to Sheriff Daryl Wheeler and other sheriff’s officials who helped secure a rental car and replacement child safety seats.

“You truly have helped my family in this accident!” Tiffani Cecil-Lawson said in the Oct. 17 message.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.