A 79-year-old man has died days after he was struck by an SUV while walking in the road on a quiet north Asheville street. Drew Jay Cherner was hit from behind around 10:03 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 8, as he walked eastbound in the 440 block of Old Stone Gate Place, and he died three days later at the hospital.
Cherner was walking in the roadway when an eastbound 2019 Volvo XC90 SUV struck him from behind, according to 828 News Now. He was rushed to Mission Hospital, where he died on Sunday, as reported by WYFF, citing Asheville police. The driver remained at the scene and was initially cited for failure to reduce speed.
Police to Consult With District Attorney
Asheville Police Department officers plan to consult with the Buncombe County District Attorney's Office after their preliminary crash investigation wraps up, according to Mountain Xpress. Whether prosecutors pursue any charge beyond the traffic citation remains an open question pending the department's review.
Fatal crash investigations in Asheville fall to the department's specialized Traffic Safety Unit, which is tasked under Asheville Police Department Policy 1300 with conducting full investigations of collisions resulting in serious injury or death. The unit also analyzes citywide crash data to help target traffic enforcement efforts, per the city of Asheville's police policy documentation.
Treatment at Mission Hospital
Cherner was treated at Mission Hospital.
Residential Streets Not Immune to Pedestrian Deaths
While major commercial corridors like Patton Avenue and Merrimon Avenue account for the highest collision volumes in the city, fatal pedestrian incidents also occur on lower-volume residential roadways like Old Stone Gate Place, 828 News Now has reported separately. Patton Avenue's intersection with New Leicester Highway alone logged more than 140 crashes between 2020 and 2024, underscoring how different Cherner's quiet street looks on paper.
The crash adds to a troubling local and statewide trend. Buncombe County recorded 70 pedestrian-involved traffic crashes in 2024, resulting in seven fatalities and 72 non-fatal injuries, according to North Carolina Department of Transportation crash data. That countywide total nearly doubled from 38 pedestrian crashes in 2023. Statewide, pedestrian deaths across North Carolina surged 12% in 2024 to 281 fatalities, per the N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles' 2024 Crash Facts report, even as overall traffic fatalities rose a comparatively modest 2.7% that year.
How to Share Information
Asheville police are soliciting anonymous tips related to crash investigations through the TIP2APD mobile app or text service.
For now, questions remain about what role speed or visibility may have played on Old Stone Gate Place that Thursday morning.
