A tragic event unfolded on Friday night as a 22-year-old Nashville man, identified as William Edward Robinson of 30th Avenue North, died after an incident involving a high-speed vehicle chase and a subsequent fall from a retaining wall on the Briley Parkway south exit ramp from I-40. As reported by the Metro Nashville Police Department, Robinson had crashed his Infiniti G37 sedan into the retaining walls before exiting the vehicle and leaping over the right wall, falling to the grassy area below.

The pursuit began when a Hermitage Precinct officer, traveling west on I-40, noticed the Infiniti enter the interstate with an expired license plate that was visibly not secure. Atempting a traffic stop, the officer activated his blue lights, but Robinson accelerated away rapidly and seemed to be making an uncertain bid for escape. The officer initiated no pursuit as the lights were deactivated after only 18 seconds. Another officer observed the speeding Infiniti pass by on the interstate before the car swerved to take the Briley Parkway south ramp, leading to the crash. The officers upon arrival witnessed Robinson running and jumping over the wall.

Efforts to locate Robinson's next of kin have so far been unsuccessful, and he was pronounced dead at the Skyline Medical Center. Inside the Infiniti, the officers discovered various illegal paraphernalia, including a Glock pistol modified to be fully automatic, 22.7 grams of crystal meth, 55.7 grams of a white substance, 17.1 grams of a purple substance, along with scales and ammunition. It was also found that Robinson was wanted in Sumner County on a felony probation violation warrant.

Detectives are inclined to believe the death was accidental, pending an autopsy report from the Medical Examiner. The full investigation is ongoing as authorities work to piece together the details surrounding the fatal altercation as detectives classify the death.