After a week of investigation, the Madisonville Police Department has concluded that a wreck that killed a North Carolina man was a one-car accident.

Police Chief Gregg Breeden said when the Dec. 14 wreck occurred, they immediately found two witnesses who saw the wreck that killed William J. Erwin, 67, Floyd Stalcup Road, Murphy, N.C.
"Two women saw the wreck and told us there wasn't another car involved," Breeden said. "But then the rumor mill began to move and at one point there was some suspicion the car the two women were in had been the one to hit Erwin's truck."

And there was also Erwin's wife, Carolyn, 63, who changed her story three times after the wreck.
"At first she said she didn't know what happened," Breeden said. "Then later she said a car had pulled out in front of them from Isbill Road as they were driving on New Highway 68. Now she's gone back to saying she doesn't remember what happened."

A sticking point in the investigation was a rubber mark on the side of Erwin's Toyota Tacoma that made officers think another vehicle had been involved.
"It was the kind of mark that wouldn't have been made by the truck hitting the pavement when it flipped on its side," Breeden said. "But it was the only indication another vehicle might have been involved."

A Tennessee Highway Patrol accident investigation team was called in and after the wreck was recreated using photos and computers, police realized the mark came from the truck's back window breaking out and getting trapped under the truck as it was on its side.
As to what caused the accident, Breeden said it'll probably never be known.

"The two ladies who saw the wreck claim they never saw another vehicle hit the truck," he said. "But it could have been any number of things. Maybe there was another car swerved into his lane and Erwin jerked the steering wheel too far to get out of the way. They had been on a trip and were tired, so he might have fell asleep or just closed his eyes for a minute. They did have a dog in the truck. It might have gotten excited and jumped on him or somehow caused him to lose control."
If there was another car that caused Erwin to lose control, Breeden said it wouldn't do much good to find the driver.

"If they didn't make physical contact with the truck there wouldn't be much to do other than give them a citation for failure to maintain their lane," he said. "If no one comes forward and says they saw the wreck from beginning to end, there's not anything else we can do."

michael.thomason@advocateanddemocrat.com | 442-4575