Suicide follows fatal collision

June 9, 2006

By MARY AMES

Frontiersman

MAT-SU - Two area men who apparently didn't know one another have died as the result of a fatal meeting Monday night shortly after 10 p.m.

Patrick Curtis, 47, of Wasilla, was riding his bicycle a little after 10 p.m. on the frontage road near the intersection of the Parks Highway and Hyer Road when he was struck by a Dodge flatbed truck.

The impact killed Curtis and his dog. Witnesses reported that the truck left the scene at a high rate of speed, according to the Alaska State Troopers

Curtis died from his injuries at the scene, and troopers began a search for a truck matching witness descriptions.

&#8220It was a heavy-duty flat bed,” said Leonard Wallner, a trooper investigator. &#8220We had the vehicle description from the get-go.”

People in three cars driving along the Parks Highway near the Hyer Road intersection witnessed the crash, Wallner said.

The people in two vehicles stayed to talk with troopers and the other driver continued on, but called troopers later, he said.

From pieces of the truck left on the road and a description from witnesses, troopers were able to determine that the truck was a late 1990s model, Wallner said.

The Dodge was described by witnesses as dark-colored, with a rack above the truck bed and an upright acetylene tank and tools in the back. The truck had a broken driver's side window, and a headlight or turn-signal lens was damaged on the left side, the report said.

Tuesday afternoon, troopers had an eight-page list of similar trucks registered in the Valley, and planned to check on each one all the way to Eagle River, Wallner said.

About 3:15 p.m. on Tuesday, troopers found a Dodge truck parked in a Dearborn Drive driveway that showed damage they believed corresponded to the Dodge in the fatal hit-and-run, the report said.

Troopers already had identified James Jay Felland, 34, as a possible suspect because he lived in the area and owned a 1999 Dodge flatbed pick up truck.

When no one answered the door at the Felland home, investigators remained at the house while troopers from the Palmer patrol obtained a search warrant to seize the truck.

About 6 p.m., Felland's wife arrived home from work and granted permission for troopers to examine the truck more closely.

Then she entered the garage and found a suicide note from her husband.

&#8220It was brief,” Wallner said of the note. &#8220It didn't mention the crash. It just said for her to not come in the house and to call 911.”

Investigators found Felland dead in an upstairs bedroom of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, the report said.

In a second note, Felland told his family that he was sorry and that he loved them, said Greg Wilkinson, trooper spokesman.

Troopers impounded the truck and released Felland's body to his family.

Investigation continues into where Felland was between 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. Monday night.

Anyone with information is asked to contact troopers at 745-2131.

&#8220It's a tragic thing all the way around,” Wallner said.

Contact Mary Ames at

352-2284 or mary.ames@

frontiersman.com.