Jury weighs fate of man charged in DUI fatality

Wednesday, March 7, 2001 | 11:37 a.m.

The fate of a man charged with drunken driving in a crash last year that left one woman dead and another a quadriplegic is in the hands of a jury, which could make its decision as soon as today.

The defense and prosecution in the case of Clark Morse asked jurors not to be swayed by sympathy and to weigh only the evidence.

Defense attorney Lew Brandon told jurors Tuesday not to be influenced by public opinion, but to look at, for example, how the incident was handled by police, including their failure to give Morse a sobriety test immediately.

In their closing statements to jurors, Deputy District Attorneys Bruce Nelson and Gary Booker said "don't buy" Morse's claims that his alleged mental illness diminished his capacity in the accident that killed one and injured six.

The jury, composed of eight women and four men, began deliberations Tuesday afternoon and remained out this morning.

Morse, 57, is charged with driving under the influence of alcohol in the March 11, 2000, rear-ending accident of four cars, which were waiting at a stoplight on Boulder Highway.

Paralyzed from the chest down in that crash was Cynthia Jay-Brennan, 31, who weeks earlier had won the largest slot jackpot in history -- $35 million on a Megabucks machine. She was the driver of a car in which her sister, Lela Jay, 45, was a passenger. Lela Jay was killed in the accident.

Five others in three separate cars suffered varying but not life-threatening injuries when a Ford Explorer, which Morse allegedly took that night from his mother to drive to two bars, collided with them at 51 to 55 mph, according to testimony in the weeklong trial.

Tests taken within three hours of the accident showed Morse had a blood alcohol level of 0.18 and 0.15. A level of 0.10 in Nevada is considered under the influence.

At the time of the accident the blood alcohol level could have been as high as 0.24 -- a point Booker made several times during his closing argument.

At one point, John Moran Jr., Morse's co-counsel, objected. He called it speculation on the part of the prosecution. District Judge Valorie Vega overruled the objection after Booker argued the theory was made by a witness during the prosecution's case.

Morse faces two counts each of driving under the influence causing death or serious bodily injury, two counts of reckless driving and seven counts of leaving the scene of the accident. He also faces one manslaughter charge and one count of driving with a suspended license.

If convicted, Morse, who has been arrested for DUI at least 16 times, faces a maximum sentence of 166 years in prison.

During the trial the defense implied that Morse was not immediately given a sobriety test, because police feared he would have been under the legal limit. It also was offered that Morse perhaps did not appear drunk when police found him asleep at his mother's house, where he lives.

They put forth the theory that an upset Morse consumed alcohol after the accident and that so much alcohol in his system would not show up until three hours after the accident, when tests were taken.

Booker argued the evidence does not support that. Instead, he said, Morse did his drinking at the two bars he visited before the accident.

Brandon told jurors several witnesses did not place Morse at the scene. He said a psychologist, testifying for the defense a day earlier, said Morse was mentally retarded and had the mental capacity of a third-grader.

Nelson told jurors evidence shows Morse, and no other person, drove the Ford Explorer that night, and Morse admitted it to at least two witnesses. Nelson said Morse fled the scene and, "Why he left doesn't matter."

Booker called the defense's case "the Gumby defense -- No matter how you stretch it it doesn't make sense." He was referring to the stretch toy and clay-animated character that originated in the 1950s.

Booker said although the defense psychologist said Morse had the capacity of a third-grader, Morse had the foresight to steal his mother's car keys, lie to her about why he was leaving the house, start the Explorer, drive to two bars, buy drinks for himself and others and attempt to drive home.

"Third-graders don't do that," Booker said. "Don't be fooled by this mental illness nonsense. He (Morse) knows the difference between right and wrong."

Booker reminded the jury that Morse was capable of holding jobs for long periods, noting he was a custodian in the Clark County School District for 14 years, a gardener at the Community College of Southern Nevada for eight years and that he put up and tore down displays as a Teamster at the Las Vegas Convention Center for five.

"You can't have it both ways," Booker said. "The evidence is overwhelming."