A teen was killed when she made a wrong turn in Modesto. Her killer was just sentenced
A Modesto man who shot into a car full of teens that made a wrong turn pleaded guilty to first-degree murder last week, the Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office announced.
Damon Morrison Jr., 25, and two others were in front of a home on Oak Street when 14-year-old Maria Juarez drove her car into a dead-end early Dec. 26, 2020, just after midnight.
At the time, the neighborhood where the shooting happened was controlled by the Valley Boyz Crip street gang, of which Morrison and his two companions were members.
Juarez had three passengers: an 18-year-old woman, a 16-year-old boy and an 11-year-old girl. When Juarez hit the dead end, she turned the car around.
Thinking the car and everyone in it belonged to a rival gang, Morrison and the two others fired more than 20 shots into the vehicle as it drove past. Juarez crashed into a light pole as she tried to escape, according to the DA’s Office.
Juarez was shot twice, and the wounds were fatal. The 18-year-old woman and the 16-year-old boy also were shot but recovered. The 11-year-old girl escaped injury.
Modesto Police Department homicide detectives caught up with Morrison and the other two shooters, 24-year-old Angelo Keo and a 16-year-old boy, about a month later.
Keo initially was arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder. However, these charges were dropped as part of his plea deal. Keo pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and assault with a deadly weapon. He was sentenced to 17 years in prison, according to court documents.
The DA’s Office said it had “evidentiary issues” that prevented it from prosecuting Keo on the charges on which he was first arrested. During the investigation it was found that Keo’s weapon was not the one that killed Juarez.
The juvenile suspect remains in custody as it’s being determined whether he’ll be tried as an adult or a minor.
Morrison Jr. pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and was sentenced to life in prison.
“Several violent crimes were linked to this criminal street gang through investigation by the Modesto Police Department’s Street Gang Unit,” read a DA’s Office release. “The District Attorney’s Major Crimes Unit prosecuted multiple cases related to this street gang, resulting in convictions. Enforcement efforts have significantly reduced the gang’s ability to engage in criminal gang activity.
This story was originally published October 21, 2024 at 2:54 PM.
