After creamery theft, Sequim man convicted of heroin possession

Published 10:18 am Wednesday, June 22, 2016

A Clallam County jury found Sequim resident Klell Morgan, 65, guilty last week of possession of heroin.

According to court records, Morgan was arrested in September 2014 after a report that milk and cash were stolen from a refrigerator of the Dungeness Valley Creamery. Video footage from the creamery showed Morgan gathering items.

Heroin was found in Morgan’s wallet when he was booked into jail, according the sheriff’s probable cause statement.

A court-ordered psychiatric evaluation in 2015 delayed the trial until Morgan was evaluated by Western State Hospital.

A Clallam County judge found he had the capacity to understand court proceedings in April 2016.

State officials recommended at sentencing that Morgan receive 30 days jail with the option of serving that time under electronic home monitoring at Morgan’s own expense, that the court order Morgan to undergo chemical dependency and mental health evaluations, and that the Department of Corrections monitor him complying with treatment.

The court sentenced Morgan to one day jail with credit for one day served and imposed the evaluations and treatment as part of his sentence.

Morgan has previous convictions for assault and soliciting a controlled substance, which do not count toward his offender score. He has an unrelated pending charge of unlawful use of a building for drug purposes, Deputy Prosecutor Steven Johnson said.