KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — A driver is facing several charges including vehicular homicide after a pedestrian was struck and killed when a car ran off the road in Knoxville on Monday.
Shannon Walker, 44 of Maryville, Tennessee, has been charged with vehicular homicide and DUI among other charges stemming from the crash according to the Knoxville Police Department.
KPD responded just after 4 p.m. on Monday to the crash on Kingston Pike near Thimbleberry Road west of Concord Street. A KPD spokesperson said that based on the initial investigation, officers believe a car, driven by Walker, was traveling east on Kingston Pike when it ran off the road and struck a pedestrian walking on the sidewalk.
The car then struck a pole with the front driver’s side of the vehicle and continued to go eastbound into the westbound lanes of Kingston Pike until it came to a stop at the entrance of the Second Presbyterian Church according to court records.
The pedestrian was pronounced dead at the scene. The victim has been identified as Ben Kredich, the son of Tennessee Director of Swimming & Diving Matt Kredich, by UT.
Court records claim that Walker told officers that he passed out when driving on Kingston Pike and woke up where officers found him. As an officer was asking for Walker’s identification he reportedly “made another spontaneous utterance stating that ‘I can’t believe I killed someone’.”
AMR spoke with Walker and according to court records his pupils were constricted, he had slurred speech and was also slowed to respond to questions.
Officers discovered that Walker had been previously treated by AMR around 1:55 p.m. after he was found unresponsive in his vehicle. The arrest report reads that AMR administered Narcan and he was then taken to a local hospital. He was discharged around 3:20 p.m. according to court records.
Officers searched Walker’s car and according to KPD, they found various narcotics, including suspected heroin. Due to the circumstances, the narcotics found, and the crash resulting in a death a search warrant was issued for a blood draw according to police.
Walker’s bond has been set at $41,750.
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An ongoing investigation is being led by KPD crash reconstruction investigators. More information will be released when it becomes available.
Police are also investigating a suspected hit-and-run crash that left a pedestrian dead on Magnolia Avenue around 3 a.m. Monday.
A preliminary hearing in the case has been set for Tuesday, Sept. 5.
Editors Note: The story has been updated to reflect the correct time when he was discharged from the hospital.
