Island man gets two months in jail for cocaine
A San Juan Island man was ordered to serve two months in jail for possession of cocaine following an ill-timed trip to the Sheriff’s Department, in which he was arrested while inquiring about the status of a traffic-accident report.
On May 30, Jacob Thomas Morrison, 29, pleaded guilty in San Juan County Superior Court to one count of possession of cocaine, a Class C felony. He was sentenced to two months in jail and ordered to pay $700 in fines and fees. He will be credited 30 days if he completes inpatient substance-abuse treatment and will be allowed to serve on work crew in lieu of jail.
Morrison was taken into custody in early March at the Sheriff’s Department in Friday Harbor. A warrant had been issued for his arrest at that time for lack of restitution payments in connection with a pair of prior felony assault convictions.
According to court documents, a small amount of cocaine spilled from a dollar bill which had been in Morrison’s wallet as officers searched his belongings. He was charged with a drug-related felony.
Morrison served three years in prison for gouging a man’s eye during a midnight melee on the outskirts of Roche Harbor Resort nearly eight years ago. He was also ordered to pay roughly $300,000 in restitution.
The victim, 47 years of age at the time, suffered irrevocable damage to an eye and its socket as a result of the assault and underwent a series of surgeries to mend what could be repaired.
A Class C felony, possession of cocaine carries maximum penalties of five years in prison, a $10,000 fine, or both; however, the standard range of sentence set by the state is 0-6 months.
— Scott Rasmussen
Flee attempt prompts felony conviction
A San Juan Island man who last week confessed to driving drunk and trying to flee a patrol car was ordered to pay nearly $3,000 in fines and fees, and to serve at least one day in jail.
He will be allowed to serve another 89 days on work crew, at his own expense, in lieu of jail.
On June 6, Bryan Scott Fox, 56, pleaded guilty in San Juan Superior Court to one count of DUI, a gross misdemeanor, and to one count of attempting to elude a police vehicle, a felony.
Fox, sentenced as a first-time offender, was ordered to serve a total of 90 days in jail, the majority of which may be served on work crew, and to pay $2.950 in fines and fees. Two additional charges which resulted from his March 12 arrest — resisting arrest and driving with a suspended license, both misdemeanors — were dismissed.
According to court documents, Fox reportedly was speeding while southbound on Cattle Point Road when an officer tried to pull him over at about 5 p.m. He turned onto Heritage Road and tried to elude the patrol car. He abandoned his vehicle and attempted to flee on foot when the road came to an end. He then grudgingly surrendered following a standoff with a stun gun and an officer who was poised to use it, according to court records.
A Class C felony, attempting to elude carries maximum penalties of five years in prison, a $10,000 fine, or both; however, the standard range of sentencing set by the state is 2-5 months.
A gross misdemeanor, DUI carries penalties of up to a year in jail and a $5,000 fine.
— Scott Rasmussen
