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Thursday, Nov. 05, 2009

Judge will resentence Morse in DUI case

Son of Merced County D.A. had been sentenced to more than 12 years.

SANTA ROSA -- Convicted drunk driver Dylan Morse will be resentenced Dec. 2 for causing a fatal collision that killed one man and injured two others, a Sonoma County judge decided Wednesday.

Judge Kenneth Gnoss set the new sentencing date for Morse during a brief morning hearing in Sonoma County Superior Court.

Last month, Gnoss decided to recall Morse's 12-year, four-month prison sentence entirely. Gnoss has not publicly said why he's decided to reconsider the sentence.

The 19-year-old son of Merced County District Attorney Larry Morse II was in court for the hearing, but was emotionless and said nothing. He nodded when asked questions by Gnoss.

Gnoss can resentence Morse to 12 years, four months in prison or less than that. He cannot, however, give Morse more years in prison than he was originally sentenced to.

Under state law, a judge has 120 days to reconsider his sentence. Morse was sentenced on July 15. During the hearing, Gnoss provided Morse's attorney, Chris Andrian, with a packet of letters he'd received from members of the public about the case.

Although Andrian said he's obviously hoping for a reduced sentence for his client, he's unsure what Gnoss will ultimately decide. "I just feel very grateful that he's willing to take a second look at it, because he doesn't have to reduce it," Andrian said. "I think my obligation now is to give the judge all the options that I think are realistic and go from there."

Morse was arrested Feb. 14 after causing a two-car collision near Cotati. California Highway Patrol investigators said the car he was driving, a 1998 Volvo, passed through a red light around 2:20 a.m., at the intersection of Stony Point Road and Highway 116. Morse smashed into a 1988 Honda driven by 22-year-old Alexander Ruiz of Oakland, killing him.

The crash seriously injured the passenger in Morse's car, 19-year-old Ryne Spitzer, who remains in a coma. Vanessa King, the 25-year-old passenger in Ruiz's car, suffered a broken arm and facial lacerations.

Morse was driving with a blood alcohol level of 0.15 percent, nearly twice the state's legal limit, according to the CHP. Investigators said open beers and marijuana were found in the car.

According to Morse's presentencing report, he began drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana while he was a freshman at Golden Valley High. He also used psilocybin mushrooms, snorted cocaine and used Ecstasy.

Morse, who pleaded guilty to several charges, had begun serving his sentence in Pleasant Valley State Prison. He was recently relocated to Sonoma County Jail to await his resentencing.

Reporter Victor A. Patton can be reached at (209) 385-2431 or vpatton@mercedsun-star.com.