A juvenile probation report may help determine whether a teen involved in a street racing car crash that killed a San Carlos couple in November will be tried as a juvenile or an adult.
Cesar Morales, 18, but 17 at the time of the crash, and 23-year-old Kyle Harrison, who did not know each other, are accused of going more than 80 mph while racing on El Camino Real in Redwood City. Morales is accused of T-boning a car at the intersection of El Camino Real and Finger Avenue in Redwood City Nov. 4 while racing Harrison, resulting in the deaths of Greg Ammen, 44, and Grace Spiridon, 42. Their daughters, who are twins, 7, survived the crash.
Morales appeared in juvenile court on Thursday, May 25, but the case was continued to June 29 so prosecutors, the defense and the judge can review the Juvenile Court’s probation report before proceeding, San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said.
Morales is charged with second degree murder, and Wagstaffe said if the case is transferred to adult court, he could face 15 years to life in prison. However, if the case remains in juvenile court he can be held in Juvenile Hall until he is 25 years old, which would be seven years.
The reason Morales and Harrison are being charged with second-degree murder opposed to vehicular manslaughter, Wagstaffe said, is because the racing aspect is reckless and those types of actions show a disregard for life. Both Morales and Harrison are in custody on no-bail status.
5 years in juvenile detention is nowhere near the realm of justice for killing a mother and father and leaving their children as orphans. This young man was 17 years old when he committed this crime and should absolutely be charged as an adult - him being 6 months older or younger should not impact his punishment. This young man showed blatant disregard for human life and has had enough life experience to know better. From what I can infer - this was par for the course with the lifestyle this young man was living - something bad was bound to happen. If he isnt properly sentenced he will get out at 25 and resume his lifestyle. We will hear about him again.
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5 years in juvenile detention is nowhere near the realm of justice for killing a mother and father and leaving their children as orphans. This young man was 17 years old when he committed this crime and should absolutely be charged as an adult - him being 6 months older or younger should not impact his punishment. This young man showed blatant disregard for human life and has had enough life experience to know better. From what I can infer - this was par for the course with the lifestyle this young man was living - something bad was bound to happen. If he isnt properly sentenced he will get out at 25 and resume his lifestyle. We will hear about him again.
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Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.