Child threw favorite toy from car. Dad is killed walking I-65 to find it, TN cops say

A father walking Interstate 65 in search of his child’s “favorite toy” was killed by a passing SUV late Thursday, May 5, according to the Nashville Metropolitan Police Department in Tennessee.

Joshua Thomas Taylor died at the scene of the crash, police said in a news release.

“Taylor, 32, was traveling with his family on I-65 south earlier in the evening when his child threw a favorite toy out of the window,” police officials said.

“Taylor went back just before 9 p.m. to look for the toy. He parked his car at the Harding Place ramp and walked along the interstate.”

The crash happened just after a Tennessee Department of Transportation HELP truck stopped to ask why he was walking the interstate — which is “illegal and inherently dangerous,” police said.

Taylor kept going, however, running across the roadway and jumping over the barrier toward the northbound lanes, officials said.

“Taylor was struck by a GMC Yukon,” police said. “HELP truck drivers immediately began traveling to the opposite side of the interstate when they heard the collision.”

The driver of the Yukon remained at the scene after the crash and was not suspected of being impaired. Speed also was not considered a factor in the crash, police said.

This story was originally published May 6, 2022 at 1:56 PM with the headline "Child threw favorite toy from car. Dad is killed walking I-65 to find it, TN cops say."