South Salt Lake man who killed motorist given probation, sued

SALT LAKE CITY — A man who hit and killed another motorist after running a stop sign in March, pleaded guilty Monday to the charges leveled against him and was ordered not to drive a vehicle before 2012.

Efrain Torres, 50, pleaded guilty to charges of negligent homicide, a class A misdemeanor, speeding and failure to yield, both class C misdemeanors, for the incident that left 52-year-old Roy Moorman, a single father, dead. On Monday, family members of the victim also sued Torres, claiming wrongful death and negligence on behalf of Moorman's son, who is legally blind and mentally retarded. Third District Judge Vernice Trease sentenced Torres to three years probation and required that he perform 540 hours of community service and pay a $600 fine. She also forbade Torres from using a vehicle until March of 2012.

She sentenced him to two consecutive terms of 90 days in jail on the speeding and failure to yield charges, but suspended the jail time.

Torres will not spend time behind bars unless he violates his probation.

Torres was driving a pickup truck east on Guest Avenues, near his South Salt Lake home when he ran a stop sign, going 60 mph, in a 25 mph zone, charging documents state. He crashed into Moorman's vehicle as Moorman was attempting to turn left. Moorman was transported to an area hospital where he later died.

Torres, who lives just a few blocks from the intersection, told officers he didn't see the stop sign.

In a lawsuit filed the same day that Torres pleaded guilty, Rita Morgan, on behalf of Moorman's only son, sued Torres requesting economic, non-economic, compensatory and punitive damages. The lawsuit states the victim in the fatal accident was the sole guardian of his son, who is a legally blind and suffers from epilepsy, microcephaly, pervasive developmental disorder and mental retardation.

e-mail: emorgan@desnews.com; lgroves@desnews.com