An ex-Riverside County sheriff’s deputy who tried to arrest — but then killed — a man over conflicts stemming from their attachments to the same woman was sentenced on Tuesday, Sept. 23, to a year in jail and 10 years of probation.
An Indio jury in June convicted Oscar Rodriguez, 44, of voluntary manslaughter for the 2014 slaying of Luis Carlos Morin, 39, of Coachella. Jurors acquitted Rodriguez of first-degree murder.
During Tuesday’s hearing at the Larson Justice Center in Indio, Superior Court Judge Otis Sterling heard victim-impact statements, as well as arguments from the prosecution and the defense, regarding the most appropriate sentence for the shooting.
Despite prosecutors’ objections, Sterling handed down a sentence of 10 years in state prison, which he immediately suspended in favor of the 365-day jail term and 10 years of probation, sparing Rodriguez from serving any time in state prison.
The defendant was eligible for a maximum sentence of 21 years behind bars.
“Mr. Rodriguez is a liar and a deceitful person,” Deputy District Attorney Jennifer Garcia told jurors in her closing statement in June. “He employed cowboy tactics.”
At the time of the shooting, Rodriguez was romantically involved with Diana Perez, the mother of Morin’s two children. She and the then-deputy met in 2013, when he responded to 911 calls from her complaining about Morin, who she didn’t want around her home because he had a criminal past and active warrants connected to alleged auto-theft and narcotics sales.
“Diana had the motive, and Rodriguez had the ability,” Garcia said.
Rodriguez became emotionally involved in the woman’s ongoing conflicts with Morin, developing animosity toward him, Garcia said.
Rodriguez decided to act independently in apprehending Morin, prosecutors said. On the night of Jan. 27, 2014, the defendant learned the suspect had joined family members for a birthday celebration in Palm Desert and would be returning to his mother’s home in Coachella.
The prosecution said Rodriguez went to the neighborhood alone in a patrol unit, without informing his superiors, parking out of sight.
At 9:40 p.m., Morin and his mother arrived, and Rodriguez got out to direct her as she backed into a tight space. The prosecution said Rodriguez sneaked up behind Morin, but he tried to bolt, at which point the deputy swept his legs, causing both of them to fall down, Rodriguez landing on his back.
The mom shouted, “Don’t do it!”
Rodriguez pulled out his gun and opened fire, fatally wounding Morin in the chest.
Defense attorney Mark Frederick asked jurors to remember his client’s own testimony, in which he asserted, “I feared he was going to use a weapon,” prompting him to shoot to protect himself.
“(Pepper) spray and a baton were not feasible at an arm’s-length struggle,” Frederick said.
He questioned the reliability of Morin’s mother’s testimony, saying she was unclear about the position of her son’s hands during the botched arrest.
The attorney referred to Morin as a “career criminal,” angry about the relationship between his ex-girlfriend and Rodriguez. He noted that several months before the deadly shooting, Perez received a message from Morin, stating, “Cop lover … Tell him to bring his A-game, because no matter what he does, he’s going to lose.”.
Morin’s family sued the Sheriff’s Department and the county for wrongful death, netting a $7 million payout.
