Tourist dead, family hurt after pedestrian crash in downtown Nashville

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A 66-year-old man was killed and three others were injured in a chain-reaction crash in downtown Nashville late Thursday night.

The crash happened around 11:45 p.m. near the intersection of Fourth Avenue North and Commerce Street.

Metro police reported a maroon Mercedes C30 sped through a red light and hit a van that was operating as a ride share and loading passengers into the vehicle on Commerce Street.

According to court documents, officers reviewed surveillance video that showed the Mercedes driving in the bicycle lane and onto the sidewalk before it hit four pedestrians and a parked Ford Explorer.

Leroy Wienke, of Westfield, Wisconsin was taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center where he died. His wife and sister-in-law were also hit and taken to Vanderbilt with non-life threatening injuries. A passenger in the Mercedes was also hospitalized with minor injuries.

News 2 spoke with one of Wienke's relatives by phone. He said Weinke and his wife were visiting Nashville for a wedding and had met up with another couple, who were celebrating a retirement. Although Wienke's wife and sister-in-law were expected to be okay, the relative said the whole family was shaken over the event. Several family members were on their way to Nashville Friday to help them work through this tragedy.

The driver — identified as 25-year-old John A. Williams — was taken into custody and charged with vehicular homicide, reckless endangerment and vehicular assault. His bond was set at $105,000.

Court documents show Thursday was Williams' 25th birthday. Officers noted multiple bottles of tequila were located inside the Mercedes. According to a release, officers detected a strong odor of alcohol when speaking to Williams, who had slurred speech, red, bloodshot, watery eyes, and was unsteady on his feet. There was also an obvious odor of marijuana inside the Mercedes, per Metro police.

No additional information was immediately released.