NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A man has died after being critically injured when he attempted to cross Opry Mills Drive Saturday night.
Police report that Charles Joyner, 77, and his daughter, Patricia Iezzi, 57, were both hit before 10 p.m. by a driver in a 2020 Volvo SUV.
The driver, Chelsea Newman, 32, told police that she was working as a food delivery driver after picking up an order from the Chuy's at Opry Mills. Newman said that because it was raining hard, she did not see the pedestrians in the crosswalk.
According to police, Newman showed no signs of impairment. Joyner and Iezzi were transported to Skyline Medical Center where Joyner later died. Iezzi sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
Officials say that the preliminary contributing factor in this crash was Newman's failure to yield.
The group Walk Bike Nashville says drivers need to pay more attention to whatever else is around them.
"The hard part about the excuses is if you're aware of your surroundings, its hard to make up any excuse," said Cathy Carrillo with Walk Bike Nashville. "As humans we make mistakes and there will always be room for mistakes, but when we're being proactive about things, it's a lot easier to make sure those mistakes aren't deadly."
