A man died Saturday night after a crash just north of Fairdale sent the vehicle careening into a parked car, and the driver took off running from the scene before police tracked him down close by. Louisville Metro Police were called to the 7900 block of Candleglow Lane around 8 p.m., where a passenger later died from injuries sustained in the wreck.
According to WLKY, investigators say the driver lost control of the vehicle before striking the parked car. The man riding in the passenger seat died from his injuries, police said, while the driver reportedly ran from the crash scene on foot. Officers located him near the scene shortly after, and police say he was not injured in the crash. As of Saturday night, LMPD had not filed any charges in connection with the case, though the LMPD Traffic Unit is now handling the investigation.
As reported by WHAS11, the same 7900 block of Candleglow Lane call came in just before 8 p.m., with police describing the same sequence: a loss of control, a parked-vehicle strike, a fatal outcome for the passenger, and a driver who fled before being found nearby, uninjured. Neither outlet has reported that charges have since been filed.
What Kentucky Law Says About Leaving the Scene
Under Kentucky Revised Statute 189.580, leaving the scene of a crash that results in death or serious physical injury is a Class D felony, carrying a punishment of one to five years in prison and fines up to $10,000, according to Hoffman Walker & Knauf. Fleeing a crash involving only property damage, by contrast, is treated as a Class A misdemeanor. The same statute requires any driver involved in a collision to stop immediately, check for injuries or damage, and render reasonable assistance; if requested, the driver must provide the vehicle registration number and the names and addresses of the owner, occupants and operator, per the Legislative Research Commission. It remains unclear whether prosecutors will pursue charges tied to the driver leaving the scene, since LMPD had not announced any as of Saturday night.
A Block With a Painful History
This isn’t the first fatal emergency call tied to that stretch of Candleglow Lane. Back in April 2018, the Jefferson County Coroner identified a 31-year-old man who died from blunt force trauma after being struck by a train on railroad tracks behind the 7900 block, in the Auburndale neighborhood, WHAS11 reported at the time…