ALTON - The man who struck a pedestrian last night on the River Road reached out to Riverbender.com to add some details to reports issued by the Madison County Sheriff's Office and Madison County Coroner Stephen P. Nonn.
Both agencies confirmed Jason S. Stark, 40, of Troy, Missouri, was struck and killed just after 10:30 Monday evening while walking in the westbound lanes of the Great River Road (McAdams Parkway). The portion of the highway was unlit, according to a release from Madison County Coroner Stephen P. Nonn. Nonn also confirmed Stark was struck by a 2013 Chrysler 200 driven by Matthew R. Wiles of Jerseyville.
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No charges are going to be filed as a result of Stark's death, the Madison County Sheriff's Office confirmed.
Wiles said he saw Stark standing in the middle of the road as a blurry image after looking from his speedometer. By the time he realized that blur was a human, however, Wiles said he had already struck Stark in an incident.
After striking Stark, Wiles said he immediately pulled to the side of the road and called 911. He said Stark was not breathing when he came up on him.
Also not included in the report, Wiles said, were two other vehicles involved. He said the driver of another car passed Stark and executed a u-turn at Clifton Terrace with the goal of talking him from the middle of the road. By the time that driver returned to the scene, however, Wiles had already struck Stark.
"That area of the River Road is not very well-lit, and the guy said the only reason he didn't hit him was because a barge had a spotlight directed on the area, so he was able to swerve and miss him," Wiles said.
Following the incident, Wiles said his car was destroyed, with the imprint of Stark in his front bumper and a shattered windshield, which also sawed through the dash. Wiles estimated he was traveling at 60 m.p.h. when he struck Stark.
While Stark is the obvious victim of last evening, Wiles said he has been distraught since the incident, and wants Stark's family to know it was not his intention to strike that man. He said he would have done everything possible to avoid him, and even would have performed first aid if Stark had still been breathing following the collision.
He also said he rarely takes the Great River Road, and will most likely never take it again due to the trauma he incurred from Monday night's collision.
According to a release from Nonn, Stark's vehicle was found approximately two miles east of where he was struck. His cause of death has been ruled to be a result of multiple traumatic injuries, and funeral arrangements are being handled by Alternative Funeral and Cremation Center of St. Peters, Missouri.
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