John Coffelt, Editor

A man was struck and killed last weekend while walking along Highway 41 at night in Coffee County.

The fatally injured man, Stephen Holland, 24, died as result of the injuries he sustained when he was struck by a vehicle just before midnight on March 23 on Highway 41 near Volunteer Parkway.

According to Highway Patrol reports, Holland was struck by a Chevrolet Silverado driven by a 17-year-old juvenile whose name was not released.

 “Vehicle one (the juvenile) was traveling eastbound on Highway 41,” the investigating trooper revealed in his report, noting there was a vehicle in front of the youth whose driver must have seen the man standing in the road. “The vehicle in front of it swerved to avoid the pedestrian in the roadway.”

However, the teen was not able to swerve in time. “Vehicle one was unable to avoid a collision with the pedestrian.”

The teen stopped at the scene after the accident. The juvenile was not charged with any offense in the case and investigators did not reveal why the man was walking the road in the middle of the night.

John has been with the Manchester Times since May 2011. John has won Tennessee Press Association awards for Best News Photo and placed in numerous other categories. John is a 1994 graduate of Tullahoma High School, a graduate of Motlow State Community College and earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from Middle Tennessee State University. He lives in Tullahoma, enjoys painting, dancing and exploring the outdoors.