Congressional Aide to Rep. Lois Capps Busted for Hit-and-Run
SANTA BARBARA – Congresswoman Lois Capps has egg on her face and is working hard to distance herself from one of her staff members who was arrested in the early morning hours of December 6th on charges of a felony hit-and-run resulting in life-threatening critical injuries upon a female pedestrian.
“During this difficult time, our thoughts and prayers remain with the victim…it would be inappropriate for me to comment further on this legal matter and I have complete trust in our local authorities,” was the only statement issued by Ms. Capps pursuant to the arrest of Raymond Morua, 32, who had been an employee in her office as a district representative for the past two years.
According to Santa Barbara Police Department Public Information Officer Sgt. Riley Harwood, Morua had attended a private holiday party “hosted by The Santa Barbara Independent at the Savoy Nightclub” on the night of December 5th. Just after midnight, Morua was driving through downtown Santa Barbara when he struck Mallory Rae Dies, 27.
Congresswoman Lois Capps
According to Harwood’s report to the media, Morua stopped his vehicle momentarily, observed Dies, and then drove on, heading down a dead-end street. It was at that point that witnesses confronted Morua who ignored their admonitions to return to the accident scene.
Driving away at a high rate of speed, just minutes later Morua lost control of his car and slammed into a palm tree, at which point he was “contacted by responding officers,” Harwood said. A field sobriety test was conducted, with Morua’s blood-alcohol reported at 0.17, more than double the legal limit.
Morua was immediately arrested on charges of felony hit-and-run with two individual counts of DUI. He was then booked into Santa Barbara County Jail with bail initially set at $100,000, and subsequently increased to $250,000 when it was discovered that he had two recent prior DUIs, including a previous hit-and-run.
In a press release issued by a Capps spokesperson, her office made it clear that they want to minimize any association between Ms. Capps and Morua: “Raymond Morua is no longer an employee in the office of Representative Lois Capps.”
Read more:
Noozhawk: Aide to Rep Lois Capps Fired After Alleged DUI, Hit-and -run
KEYT: Capps Aide Arrested in Near Fatal DUI Hit and Run
Cal Coast News: Capps’ aide arrested for hit and run
