A former Riverside County sheriff’s deputy was sentenced to serve a year in prison for killing his girlfriend’s former partner while on duty.
A jury convicted Oscar Rodriguez, 43, of voluntary manslaughter in June.
Initially, law enforcement authorities said Rodriguez was justified when he shot 39-year-old Luis Morin. Rodriguez said he was serving a warrant for an outstanding felony when he got into a struggle with Morin and shot him in the chest.
But a civil lawsuit revealed that at the time of the shooting Rodriguez was dating Diana Perez, who had two children with Morin. Prosecutors say Rodriguez met Perez while working as a deputy; he responded to multiple 911 calls she made about Morin threatening to kill her.
On Tuesday, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Otis Sterling III sentenced Rodriguez to a one-year jail term and 10 years of probation. The district attorney’s office objected to the court’s decision and recommended a 10-year sentence.
“This sentence minimizes the gravity of Rodriguez’s actions and the devastating impact on Mr. Morin’s family, while also disregarding the significant effort the jury devoted to reaching a just verdict,” Chief Deputy Dist. Attorney Jennifer Garcia said in a statement. “We firmly believe a stronger sentence was warranted to reflect the seriousness of this crime and to hold the defendant fully accountable.”
Prosecutors said Perez met Rodriguez around 2012 and that the two were romantically involved by January 2014 when he shot Morin. Rodriguez was cleared of any wrongdoing after an investigation into the shooting.
Morin’s family filed a federal civil suit in 2014 and revealed that Perez and Morin had two children together and she was dating Rodriguez.
Prosecutors charged Rodriguez in 2017, according to court records.
According to the lawsuit, Rodriguez hid behind some bushes outside Morin’s home in Indio on the night of the shooting. Morin and his mother had just returned home after attending a birthday party. Rodriguez ambushed Morin as he was walking to the front door and his mother, Maria Gomez, was parking her car. Rodriguez kicked Morin in the knees and the two wrestled on the ground.
It was dark outside, according to the lawsuit, and Rodriguez did not identify himself as an officer. Prosecutors said that Rodriguez did not report to the Sheriff’s Department that he was serving a search warrant at Morin’s home.
He was alone when he ambushed Morin, according to the complaint, and then pulled out his gun.
Gomez yelled, “Don’t hurt him!” as Rodriguez pointed the gun at her, court documents said.
Morin tried to break free, and Rodriguez shot him at least once in the upper part of his body.
Morin then asked, “Why did you shoot me?”
The family argued that Rodriguez delayed calling for medical care and pointed his gun at family members and neighbors who approached the scene. Morin bled to death outside his home. He was 39.
Prosecutors said that Perez told Rodriguez where to find Morin on the night of the shooting. Rodriguez resigned from the Sheriff’s Department in March 2016, and Riverside settled the civil suit for $6.95 million.
Both Rodriguez and Perez were charged in connection with Morin’s killing. But this year, the Riverside County district attorney’s office dropped its charge against Perez of accessory to murder “in the interest of justice,” according to a spokesperson for the office.
Rodriguez was sentenced to one year in jail and credited 194 days for time already served.
Attorney Brett Greenfield, who represented Morin’s family in the civil lawsuit, said he was not surprised by the jury’s verdict to convict Rodriguez.
The evidence in the case showed that “this Riverside County sheriff’s deputy engaged in reckless and unlawful conduct,” Greenfield said in an emailed statement.
“The conviction confirms what we proved then, but the sentencing was not commensurate with the malicious conduct of this deputy and reflects the broader attitude of Riverside County and the Riverside County sheriff toward accountability,” Greenfield said. “The community and the justice system must not tolerate abuses of power, and my hope is that this outcome will drive real change within the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.”
In a statement from Riverside County Superior Court, a spokesperson said, “Because this matter remains pending before the Court, it would be a violation of the California Code of Judicial Ethics for the Court or its judges to comment.”
This story originally appeared on LA Times
