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Homeless Man Faces 32 Years in Prison for Santa Monica Violent Crime Spree

 

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By Jorge Casuso

June 22, 2018 -- A homeless man pleaded no contest Wednesday to charges stemming from three attacks in Santa Monica last year, including two violent home invasions in the upscale North of Montana neighborhood.

Brian Noah Morgan, 24, faces 32 years in State prison when he returns to court for sentencing July 6 at the Airport Branch Courthouse in Los Angeles, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
Brian Noah MorganBrian Noah Morgan, (Courtesy SMPD)

Morgan pleaded no contest to two counts each of attempted murder and second-degree robbery, said Deputy District Attorney Keri Modder.

Morgan also admitted a special allegation of using a knife, which is a deadly and dangerous weapon, Modder said.

The attacks -- which took place in the beach city between May 14 and May 26 last year -- alarmed residents of the city's wealthiest precinct, leading to heightened calls for more policing.

The violent spree began on the afternoon of May 15 when Morgan and a male juvenile suspect apparently entered a home on the 500 block of 17th Street after knocking on the door, according to police.

A man in his early 60s who was inside was severely assaulted and taken to a local hospital ("Santa Monica Resident Severely Assaulted in North of Montana Home," May 17, 2017).

After the incident, the Police Department issued a community alert and deployed additional officers in the neighborhood.

Less than two weeks later, on May 26 several blocks away the suspects struck again ("Two Hospitalized After Second Home Invasion Robbery in Santa Monica's North of Montana Neighborhood," May 27, 2017).

In that incident, in a home on the 200 block of 19th Street near the exclusive Riviera Country Club, Morgan and the juvenile attacked a father and his 19-year-old son ("Suspects Charged in Two Brutal Home Invasion Robberies in Santa Monica," May 31, 2017).

Both were hospitalized after the son was struck with a hammer and the father was stabbed when he tried to intervene, according reports.

Both suspects fled the scene but were subsequently captured by police.

In the third robbery, a couple that had just returned from their daughter’s wedding were unloading the gifts in front of their house when they were approached by Morgan, who demanded money, according to the DA's office.

"After a scuffle, Morgan took the woman’s wedding ring and some money," the prosecutor said.

Morgan was arrested on May 26 last year after fleeing from the scene of the final crime, authorities said.

"Fingerprints and other evidence gathered at the two crime scenes helped tie the incidents together," Police Department spokesman Lt. Saul Rodriguez said at the time.

 


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