Texting motorist kills predestrian

BROWNING — A 29-year-old Browning woman who had reportedly just left a bar says she was reading a text message when she felt something hit her car early Sunday.

The Montana Highway Patrol says the woman struck and killed a 42-year-old Browning man who was walking along U.S. Highway 2 near Browning at about 2 a.m.

The patrol connected the woman to the pedestrian’s death after she was pulled over for a traffic violation an hour later. Troopers found pieces of clothing on her car consistent with the victim’s.

The woman said she stopped, believing she had hit a horse. She said she didn’t see anything and continued traveling east toward Browning.