Paul Morrisroe’s appeal of his homicide by vehicle conviction is headed to the state Superior Court for consideration.
Morrisroe, 42, incarcerated in State Correctional Institution-Albion, is serving 7½ to 15 years for the fatal hit-and-run crash that claimed the life of Dakota Heinaman in 2015 in Cyclone.
He had been represented at trial by Warren attorney Robert Kinnear, Bradford attorney Dan Lang and Smethport attorney James P. Miller.
Miller had represented Morrisroe on appeal immediately after the 2017 conviction. However, in April of 2018, Morrisroe filed his own a post-conviction relief act petition “asking that his right to an appeal before the Pennsylvania Superior Court be reinstated after his former attorney took no action on appeals he previously filed with the Pennsylvania Superior Court.”
On May 3, 2018, the state Superior Court had dismissed Morrisroe’s appeal because deadlines in the case had been missed by the defense.
On July 24, 2018, the court appointed attorney Christopher Martini to Morrisroe’s case. He filed a motion to reinstate the appeal rights, which was granted in February. Martini filed a statement of matters complained of on appeal last month, which didn’t include any new issues, but instead preserved 32 out of the 38 issues the appeal had contained when it was filed by Miller.
The majority of the six issues dropped dealt largely with court hearings and actions prior to the commencement of trial in Venango County in 2017.
The remaining 32 allegations of error included President Judge John Pavlock’s alleged failure to exclude evidence, the decision to limit questioning of some witnesses, and the alleged insufficiency of evidence. The appeal also said Pavlock erred by imposing consecutive sentences and failing to merge various offenses for sentencing.
On Wednesday, McKean County Prothonotary Laura Isadore said the case will be assigned a number in the state Superior Court, at which time she can ship the records to the court for consideration. The voluminous case file includes 35 transcripts and numerous pleadings.
The case has been ongoing since June 2, 2015, when a pickup truck driven by Morrisroe, who was under the influence of alcohol and marijuana, struck the rear of a motorcycle, operated by Heinaman, who was slowed and waiting to turn into his driveway in Cyclone.
After striking the motorcycle, Morrisroe drove away without stopping. The front tire came off the rim of his truck, leaving a gouge mark in the road from the site of the crash to Morrisroe’s garage in Marshburg, some 15 miles away.
It was a circuitous path to justice, as multiple hearings had been held and motions argued since the case was first filed. And in 2016, a trial was attempted in McKean County, but failed when the court was unable to seat a jury.
The trial was then scheduled in Venango County, with Pavlock hearing the case. The trial lasted nearly two weeks before the Venango County jury found Morrisroe guilty of charges including homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence of alcohol and marijuana, accidents involving death, homicide by vehicle, DUI, and numerous traffic offenses.
Morrisroe has been incarcerated since the verdict was read in January 2017.
