Hit-and-run driver sobs, apologizes for killing SE Portland pedestrian

1021 S.W. Fourth Avenue

A 25-year-old man who spent an afternoon drinking at a Southeast Portland strip club, drove drunk, then killed a pedestrian before driving away to cover up his crimes was sentenced to four years in prison Monday.

Jay Taylor Jenkins pleaded guilty to criminally negligent homicide, driving under the influence of intoxicants and hit-and-run driving for the Feb. 15 death of Douglas Norman Miller. Miller had meth in his system and was not at a crosswalk as he tried to cross Southeast Powell Boulevard near 124th Avenue about 6:30 p.m.

Jenkins sobbed and apologized to relatives of Miller, who offered their forgiveness. After the hearing and before a deputy escorted Jenkins out of the courtroom in handcuffs, Miller's relatives and Jenkins held hands and prayed.

According to a probable cause affidavit, witnesses said Jenkins and his friend, Jerin Nigel Crabtree, had been drinking at the Mystic strip club at Southeast 99th Avenue and Stark Street. The pair had text messaged and phoned Crabtree's housemates for a ride home, but the housemates didn't immediately see the messages, according to the affidavit.

Jay Jenkins

Surveillance video from a business near the crash scene shows a Subaru-type station wagon drive by an instant after striking Miller, the affidavit states.

Miller's body can be seen in one of the videos tumbling across the road, according to the affidavit. The next evening, on Feb. 16, two of Crabtree's housemates called Portland police.

The housemates told police they suspected Jenkins and Crabtree were hiding a damaged Subaru in a garage on a property about a mile from the crash scene, according to the affidavit.

They described damage to the Subaru: It had a hole the size of a basketball in its windshield, a cracked front bumper, a left headlight secured with a zip tie and scratches and dents on the hood.

One housemate said he asked both Jenkins and Crabtree what happened, and Crabtree answered that the two damaged the car while wrestling, the affidavit states. The second housemate said she was skeptical because she’d been struck by a car before and knew what the damage looked like, according to the affidavit.

The first housemate told police that Jenkins and Crabtree had removed the Subaru’s windshield and appeared to be repairing the car.

During a hearing last August in Multnomah County Circuit Court, Crabtree was sentenced to 45 days in jail and three years of probation for hindering prosecution.

Jenkins was released after his arrest so he could attend inpatient alcohol treatment.

In addition to his prison sentence, Jenkins will lose his driver's license for life, though he can seek reinstatement after 10 years if he remains crime-free.

-- Aimee Green

503-913-4197

If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.