GREAT FALLS, Mont. (NMB) – A Hays man that admitted to drinking and driving a vehicle when it crashed and killed a passenger in 2019 on the Fort Belknap Reservation pleaded guilty on Tuesday to felony involuntary manslaughter.
Tough Arthur Snow, 22, entered the plea before Chief U.S. District Court Judge Brian M. Morris in U.S. District Court in Great Falls.
Snow faces a maximum of eight years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release.
According to the prosecution, at around 6:10 AM on June 8th, 2019, Fort Belknap Law Enforcement responded to a 911 call of a vehicle crash on the gravel road that runs through Mission Canyon.
Medical responders found two men walking on the road. Snow initially denied his involvement in an accident and left the scene on foot. The rear seat passenger of the vehicle, identified only as John Doe 1, told responders that Snow had been the driver in an accident just down the road.
A responder then continued down the road and found a truck on its passenger side in a creek. The truck was on top of a victim, identified in court documents only as John Doe 2, was the front passenger and had died at the scene after being partially ejected.
Law enforcement found Snow soon after. He showed signs of impairment and had a blood alcohol concentration of .116.
An investigation from the Montana Highway Patrol determined that Snow owned the truck, which had gone too fast down the road and failed to negotiate a curve.
Sentencing is set for April 29th. Snow was released pending further proceedings.
The case was investigated by the FBI, Fort Belknap Law Enforcement and the MHP. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ethan Plaut is the prosecutor.
Information from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Montana
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