Driver in fatality had license suspended

A Somerville man was driving with a suspended license when he slammed into a taxicab, killing a 23-year old musician, after a chase with the Massachusetts State Police early Sunday morning, prosecutors said.

Meanwhile, Mayor Joseph Curtatone of Somerville yesterday said residents questioned why the chase took place in a thickly settled area.

Javier Morales, 29 , who was arrested at the scene, is expected to be arraigned today on charges of motor vehicle homicide, said Corey Welford, spokesman for Middlesex District Attorney Gerard T. Leone Jr.

He also faces charges of negligent operation of a motor vehicle, driving without headlights, failure to stop, speeding, and driving on a suspended license, said Welford.

He said Morales faces an older charge, of driving with a suspended license. Welford was unable to provide specifics on why Morales's license was suspended on both occasions.

Paul V. Farris, a Tufts University graduate and the lead singer in the well-regarded alternative band theMark, and his girlfriend Katelyn Hoyt were taking the taxi home after an evening out when the collision occurred.

Farris of Medford was killed. Hoyt and the cabdriver were injured. Hoyt is listed in critical condition at Massachusetts General Hospital. The cabdriver's name has not been released, and his condition is not known. Morales, who was also injured, is in an area hospital.

Farris's death cast a pall over the city this holiday weekend.

"It's a terrible tragedy," said Curtatone late yesterday. "One young innocent man is gone, and two other people's lives are in peril."

At the city's Memorial Day ceremonies, the mayor said that dozens of people approached him to discuss the chain of events that led to the collision .

"The primary responsibility rests with Mr. Morales. When you are notified to stop, it is your legal responsibility to stop," Curtatone said. "But residents are genuinely concerned that there was a high-speed pursuit in the most densely populated community in New England."

State Police and the district attorney's office are investigating the case.

"The Massachusetts State Police would like to express their heartfelt sympathy to the family of Paul Farris," the department said in a statement released yesterday. "The accident and the circumstances surrounding it remain under investigation by the Middlesex District Attorney's Office and the State Police."

In Everett about 1:24 a.m Sunday, a trooper spotted Morales driving a Mercury Mountaineer, swerving in and out of marked lanes, State Police Lieutenant William Powers said.

The trooper ordered him to stop, but Morales fled, police said .

Four minutes later in a densely populated section of Somerville, between Davis and Ball squares, the driver raced out of Kidder Avenue, onto Highland Road, and hit the taxicab.

Curtatone said he is eager to look over the State Police's review of the chase. He said he wants to know if the department has a protocol for high-speed pursuits, and if that protocol was followed during the chase. He also wants to know if the troopers had their sirens on, and when they informed Somerville police about the chase. The State Police had no further comment on the case yesterday.

Shana Lyons, a resident, said the tragedy has left her with mixed feelings.

She heard the collision outside her bedroom, ran to the window, and saw a police officer pointing a gun at Morales.

"He kept yelling, 'Why did you run? Why did you run?' " she said.

"This is a bad area to have a high-speed chase, but the cops can't control where a person goes."

Welford said Morales will be arraigned either in Somerville District Court or in his hospital room today depending on his medical status.

Christine McConville can be reached at cmcconville@globe.com.