AUBURN, Ind. (ADAMS) – An 82-year-old Auburn man has died after he was hit by an SUV Tuesday evening.
Indiana State Police say James Hatfield was walking onto Main Street and walked into the SUV’s path.
The driver stayed at the scene and is cooperating with police.
Indiana State Police released the following:
On Tuesday August 27, 2024 at approximately 9:15pm, the Indiana State Police and the Auburn Police Department responded to the 1400 block of North Main Street to investigate a reported car versus pedestrian crash near the intersection of Matthews Cove.
Arriving on scene, officers initially found an unresponsive elderly man on the ground being tended to by good Samaritans. This would be the pedestrian struck. He was identified as James W. Hatfield, 82, of Auburn.
Auburn police officers, DeKalb Parkview EMS personnel, and Auburn Fire Department personnel attempted lifesaving medical assistance, however Hatfield was pronounced deceased at the scene by the DeKalb County Coroner.
The involved driver and vehicle were identified as James Schmucker, 56, of Fort Wayne, driving a 2004 Chevrolet Trailblazer. Schmucker was not injured in the crash and was fully cooperative with investigators.
The Indiana State Police assumed the overall crash investigation. Preliminarily, the investigation has found that Schmucker was operating his Chevy Trailblazer southbound on Main Street just north of the Matthew Cove intersection. James Hatfield entered Main Street on foot in the southbound lane of travel, walking directly across the path of the oncoming Trailblazer. Schmucker’s vehicle struck Hatfield with the bumper of the vehicle. Schmucker came to a stop just off the roadway, and Hatfield’s body remained lying in the roadway.
Investigators do not suspect excessive vehicle speed nor any chemical impairment as contributing factors in the crash, however the DeKalb County Coroner conducted an autopsy of the deceased earlier today, which included toxicology testing. Schmucker also submitted to chemical testing for intoxication, which is required by Indiana law for all drivers involved in crashes resulting in serious bodily injury or death. All toxicology tests are pending currently.
Notification was made to the Hatfield family shortly after the crash.
There is no further information to release.
The Indiana State Police were assisted by Auburn Police Department, Auburn Fire Department, Parkview DeKalb EMS, and the DeKalb County Coroner’s Office.
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