Ceres man arrested on suspicion of murder released from jail

A Ceres man who was arrested earlier this week on suspicion of killing a man inside his home was released from jail Wednesday.

The Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office requested additional information from the Ceres Police Department regarding the death of 40-year-old Joseph Dillard and the man detectives arrested on suspicion of murder, 44-year-old Anthony Frank Morris.

“A claim of ‘actual self-defense’ has been raised and that necessitates that certain information be corroborated (or disproved) before a final determination can be made,” Assistant District Attorney Dave Harris said in an email.

He said that once Ceres police gather the requested information, the case will be reviewed again.

Dillard was found with gunshot wounds inside Morris’ home in the 3200 block of Ninth Street on Sunday, when Ceres police responded to a report of shots fired in the area and heard people inside the home talking about a shooting.

There were also a woman from Stockton and two teenagers in the home. The woman was detained and later released, and the teenagers were released to the custody of another adult.

Police have not said how the people in the home were related or released any information regarding the circumstances of the shooting.

This story was originally published September 26, 2019 at 12:22 PM.