Local
Eugene Planned Parenthood clinic shuttered after driver rams building in suspected intentional hit-and-run
A driver in a gray Dodge Challenger deliberately crashed into a Planned Parenthood clinic on North Danebo Avenue late Sunday night, leaving a car-sized hole and forcing the health center to close and relocate appointments, according to police and a witness.
EUGENE â A Planned Parenthood health center here is closed and all appointments have been diverted to another clinic after a driver rammed a car into the front of the building late Sunday night in what a witness and a clinic representative described as a deliberate act.
Eugene police were called to the clinic on North Danebo Avenue at about 11:15 p.m. Sunday. The owner of a neighboring business told officers that a gray Dodge Challenger had been parked in the lot for roughly 10 minutes before it appeared to accelerate intentionally into the building, according to a police statement.
The witness said the car backed out of the structure and fled the scene. The impact tore a hole the size of a vehicle where the clinicâs front windows had been, police said.
A Planned Parenthood representative told officers she believes the building was targeted. No suspects have been publicly identified and no arrests had been made as of Monday, and police said the investigation is continuing.
Planned Parenthood announced Monday that the damaged health center is closed and that all appointments have been moved to another clinic in the city.
The crash comes amid heightened national tensions over reproductive health care access, with clinics across the country facing increased security concerns in recent years. In Oregon, abortion remains legal and protected under state law, and Planned Parenthood clinics serve as a critical access point for reproductive health services, including contraception, cancer screenings and abortion care.
The closure of the North Danebo Avenue site â even temporarily â means patients in the area must travel to another location for care, a disruption that advocates say can be especially burdensome for low-income patients and those with limited transportation.
Eugene police are asking anyone with information about the incident to contact the department. The investigation is ongoing.