Nashville police: Death of Sumner suspect who jumped from Briley ramp likely 'accidental'

Metro Nashville Police have identified a 22-year-old Nashville man who they say may have accidentally jumped to his death on Interstate 40 after he hit a retaining wall on the Briley Parkway south ramp Friday night.

Detectives are expecting to classify the death as accidental pending an autopsy report, police said this week.

The trouble began shortly after 8 p.m. Friday when a Hermitage precinct officer tried to make a traffic stop on an Infiniti G37 sedan Interstate 40. The car was merging onto the interstate when the officer noticed that it had an expired license plate that was loosely attached and flapping in the wind, police said.

The driver, identified as William Edward Robinson, sped up and moved to the far left lane instead of stopping, police said, noting that the officer chose not to pursue the car and turned off his blue lights after about 18 seconds.

The speeding car passed another officer on the interstate and moved to the far right lane before taking the Briley Parkway south ramp, according to a news release from the police department.

Evidence gathered during the investigation showed the car hit the left and right retaining walls before coming to a stop on the right side of the ramp.

Officers saw Robinson get out of the car, run behind it and jump over the right retaining wall, where he fell a significant distance to a grassy area near the Briley Parkway north exit ramp, police said.

He was given aid at the scene and taken to Skyline Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

Efforts to locate Robinson's next of kin have been unsuccessful, police said.

During a search of the car, officers found a Glock pistol with a switch to make it fully automatic, two digital scales and a drum magazine with bullets, the release said. Also found inside the car were 22.7 grams of crystal meth, 55.7 grams of a white powder and 17.1 grams of a purple powder, the release said.

Robinson was wanted in Sumner County on an outstanding felony probation violation warrant at the time of his death, police said.

Katie Nixon can be reached at knixon@gannett.com.