Driver faces manslaughter charge for death of Navajo Nation man

Tuesday, February 8, 2011  

An Oregon man faces manslaughter and other charges in connection with a fatal hit and run.

Morales Singer, 37, was killed on January 26 while he was walking to his home in Salem. He was a father of three.

Jake Montano, 19, reportedly admitted to police that he was reading a text message on his cell phone when he saw Singer on the street. He struck Singer but left the scene and didn't turn himself in until for another six days.

"He hit my brother and left," the victim's sister, Michelle Singer, told The Salem Statesman Journal. "He could have called 911 and then left. That would have shown some compassion."

Montano has been charged with second-degree manslaughter, failure to perform the duties of a driver in an injury crash, tampering with evidence and two counts each of driving with a suspended license and attempting to elude a police officer.

Get the Story:
Texting may have played role in fatal hit-and-run (The Salem Statesman Journal 2/3)