BLUEFIELD, W.Va. — The case of an Illinois man previously convicted for a fatal April 2017 vehicle wreck has been dismissed.
Mercer County Circuit Court Judge William Sadler issued the action on Tuesday. Sadler said there wasn’t sufficient evidence to support charges against Bertram Copeland.
Copeland, 41, of Rockford, Illinois, was sentenced in March to more than four years in jail for his role in the incident. Copeland was driving a tractor-trailer on the West Virginia Turnpike near Camp Creek when he crossed the median, striking a passenger vehicle.
Four people in the car — Carl David Gilley, 48; Christine Tara Warden Gilley, 42; Grace Margaret Gilley, 13; and Jack Nathan Gilley, 10; of Salisbury, North Carolina — died in the crash.
A family dog also died in the incident.
Sadler said the law did not support the charges against Copeland, including four counts of negligent homicide and a count of reckless driving. He noted it was not clear if there were defects that resulted in the crash.