Police attempt to determine how Ind. man found in road died

TIPTON, Ind. (AP) -- Police are trying to determine if a man whose truck crashed on a county road in central Indiana died from the accident or exposure to single-digit temperatures.

The Kokomo Tribune reports ( http://bit.ly/XduABt ) the man's body was discovered lying in the road after it was struck by another car early Saturday. Investigators believe 22-year-old Joseph Richards was dead by then.

Police say the Atlanta, Ind., man lost control of his pickup truck sometime after midnight. The truck careened down an embankment and ended up in a drainage ditch holding three feet of water.

Richards escaped and walked about a half-mile before collapsing in the roadway, where he was later hit.

Police say they don't know whether he died of injuries from the initial crash or from exposure to the cold.

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Information from: Kokomo Tribune, http://www.ktonline.com