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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- First he broke his left leg, and then he bent the steel plate holding together the leg.
Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff's recovery from a September motorcycle crash has regressed, costing him another round of surgery and an extended stay in a wheelchair.
"This is a major setback," Shurtleff spokesman Paul Murphy said. "It just lets you know how dangerous a simple motorcycle accident can be."
Shurtleff was recovering Sunday from the surgery to repair the 12-inch steel plate that was screwed into bones of his left leg.
Doctors were able to bend the plate straight and add a second plate for support, Murphy said.
Shurtleff was injured Sept. 22 when the borrowed motorcycle he was driving hit a patch of gravel and wobbled. His left foot twisted when the Harley-Davidson fell, fracturing bones from his thigh down to the shin.
That was a practice run. Shurtleff had been preparing for the "Fall Ride for Fallen Officers," a charity ride the next day for the Utah Law Enforcement Memorial Foundation. He was unable to make it.
The group raised money to build a memorial at the state Capitol for law-enforcement officers killed while on duty.
Until Friday's surgery, Shurtleff had been getting out of his wheelchair to stand at times with the aid of a crutch, although an injured shoulder gave him some pain.
Still, Utah's top prosecutor was in good spirits, thinking he was on the road to recovery. Then doctors determined the bone plate had bent and that he would need additional surgery.
It was a setback for Shurtleff's ability to spent more time at his office, too.
Shurtleff had ridden motorcycles before and obtained a license endorsement for the Sept. 23 ride he missed. He was wearing a helmet during the crash.
He is expected to spend another six weeks in his wheelchair, Murphy said.
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Information from: The Salt Lake Tribune
(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
