Former Riverside County sheriff’s deputy charged with love triangle murder

At first, the fatal police shooting of Luis Morin Jr. appeared to be a tragic, but not unusual, occurrence.

Riverside County sheriff’s deputy Oscar Rodriguez told investigators that Morin resisted arrest while being served a warrant for outstanding felony charges. During a struggle, Rodriguez fired a shot into Morin’s torso as Morin’s mother watched, aghast. Morin, 39, died outside his Coachella home.

Officials ruled the shooting was justified and cleared Rodriguez of any wrongdoing. But a lawsuit filed by Morin’s family unearthed a twisted love triangle involving Rodriguez, Morin and the mother of two of Morin’s kids that called the shooting into question.

On Friday, prosecutors announced that Rodriguez, 36, had been arrested and charged with murder and the use of a firearm causing death. His ex-girlfriend, Diana Perez, 39, was also taken into custody and charged with accessory to murder.

The indictments capped a three-year investigation and re-opened wounds that are just starting to heal, said Brett A. Greenfield, the attorney for Morin’s family.

“The family has to relive an event that they are dying to forget,” he said.

Maria Gomez watched from her driveway Jan. 27, 2014, as Rodriguez ambushed her son in front of their Coachella home. She and Morin were returning from a family birthday party at a nearby steakhouse. She parked the car as Morin walked to the house distracted by his cell phone.

It was dark and neither of them saw Rodriguez hiding behind the bushes. He approached Morin from behind, according to the federal complaint, and kicked him in the knees. The two tussled and Rodriguez was able to pin Morin to the ground. The lawsuit states that Rodriguez did not identify himself as a law enforcement officer.

He pulled out his gun. Gomez yelled “Don’t hurt him.” Rodriguez then pointed the gun at her.

Morin begged, “Let go of me,” the lawsuit recounts.

Rodriguez pulled the trigger and shot Morin at least once. Morin asked, “Why did you shoot me?”

Family members and neighbors flooded the lawn and driveway as Morin lay bleeding. Rodriguez pointed his weapon at some of them. Rodriguez waited to call for medical help or did not allow emergency crews to treat Morin in a timely fashion, the lawsuit alleges.

“This delay of medical care directly caused the decedent extreme physical and emotional pain and suffering, and was a substantial contributing cause of the decedent’s death,” the lawsuit states.

In September 2014, Greenfield and his partner David Kenner filed the initial complaint alleging Morin’s civil rights were violated.

It wasn’t until the discovery process that they found “there was something personal about this shooting,” Greenfield said. They were able to “connect the dots” that Rodriguez and Perez had a romantic relationship.

Rodriguez testified that he had several encounters with Perez. He took Perez’s statement on three separate occasion, starting in 2012 when she called police to report that Morin vandalized her home and threatened to “187 her,” referring to the California penal code for murder.

The civil suit uncovered dozens of phone calls between Rodriguez and Perez.

When faced with tough questions about his relationship with Perez from Morin’s family and the county during his deposition for that suit, Rodriguez mostly pleaded the fifth.

Arthur Cunningham, Rodriguez’s lawyer, said he had no comment.

Greenfield said he was “very surprised” that Perez was charged, but he hopes that these charges against Rodriguez will bring some solace to Morin’s family.

Riverside County settled the civil suit for $6.95 million. Rodriguez resigned from the sheriff’s department in March 2016. He is facing up to life in prison. Perez faces up to three years in custody.

Riverside Dist. Atty. Mike Hestrin said in a written statement that nobody, not even a sheriff’s deputy, is above the law.

“When someone violates that trust and abuses his power, that person will be held accountable — just like anyone else,” he said.

For more California breaking news, follow @AngelJennings. She can also be reached at angel.jennings@latimes.com.

UPDATES:

6:05 p.m.: This article was updated to include additional details from the lawsuit.

This article was originally published at 12 p.m.