City man pleads guilty to evading police; awaits drug case hearing
Morgan ran from officers after being approached about warrant
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HOLLIDAYSBURG -- A city man accused of helping traffic about $33,000 worth of narcotics entered an open guilty plea Aug. 4 in one of the two cases against him.
James Morgan Jr., 45, was charged with single felony counts of escape and flight to avoid apprehension, as well as a misdemeanor count of evading arrest after leading officers on a foot chase when police approached him about an active state parole warrant.
In a separate but related case, Morgan is charged with six felony counts of conspiracy possession with intent to deliver, six felony counts of possession with intent to deliver, six misdemeanor counts of possession of a controlled substance and a single misdemeanor count of possession of drug paraphernalia.
Morgan's co-defendant, Casandra Williams, said Morgan came to live with her after getting out of state prison and that he helped her sell narcotics in the city. A prior search of Williams's vehicle yielded over a half pound of methamphetamine, 13 grams of fentanyl, 42 pre-packaged wax packets of fentanyl, 31 morphine pills, four grams of cocaine, 23 grams of marijuana and two digital scales. Police estimated the street value of the items to be about $33,000.
Morgan appeared alongside defense attorney Matthew McGregor for a pre-trial
motions hearing in the narcotics case in front of Judge Jackie Atherton Bernard. During that hearing, Morgan told Bernard that he still wished to litigate pre-trial motions in the case, but wanted to tender guilty pleas in the escape case in exchange for an open sentence.
Bernard accepted the plea and scheduled Morgan for sentencing at 3 p.m. Oct. 30 in courtroom three. A further hearing for Morgan's pre-trial motions in the narcotics case has yet to be scheduled.
Morgan was remanded to SCI Smithfield in lieu of $250,000 bail.
Williams faces six felony counts of possession with intent to deliver, a felony count of attempting to elude an officer, 15 misdemeanor counts of recklessly endangering another person, six misdemeanor counts of possession of a controlled substance and single misdemeanor counts of possession of drug paraphernalia and resisting arrest. She is being held at the Blair County Prison in lieu of $250,000 bail.
Mirror Staff Writer Rachel Foor-Musselman is at 814-946-7458.