FRANKLIN, Pa. (EYT) — A McKean County man was convicted on Thursday of homicide by vehicle and other charges in Venango County Court.The jury of seven men and five women needed about 5 1/2 hours to convict Paul D. Morrisroe, 40, of Marshburg, of homicide by motor vehicle while DUI, accidents involving death, hit and run, homicide by motor vehicle, and driving under the influence of marijuana.
Morrisroe was charged in the death of Dakota Heinaman after the victim was killed in a hit-and-run crash on June 2, 2015.
The case had many twists and turns as a jury could not be seated in McKean County and one of Morrisroe’s attorneys resigned from the case.
McKean County President Judge John Pavlock permitted a change of venue for the trial, and the Venango County courthouse was chosen as the setting for the trial.
According to a story in the Bradford Era, a few jurors were “visibly emotional” after watching Heinaman’s family cry.
Judge Pavlock, who presided over the case, also found Morrisroe guilty of a number of summary traffic offenses in the case.
McKean County District Attorney Stephanie Vettenburg-Shaffer asked Pavlock to modify or revoke Morrisroe’s $250,000.00 bail and he did, increasing it to $400,000.00.
Vettenburg-Shaffer said Morrisroe was a flight risk, considering he was facing more than seven years in state prison.
Morrisroe was handcuffed and shacked for return to the McKean County Jail in Smethport.
A sentencing date has not been set.
