A disc jockey requested a court-appointed lawyer Thursday during his arraignment in Lamar County Court after his arrest in connection with a September hit-and-run led to the revocation of his probation, according to court records.
Paris police arrested Rodney Sherman Willis, 59, of Paris, in the Sept. 29 hit-and-run that left 81-year-old Ismael Moreno, of Paris, fatally injured, according to police records.
Known as “The Dirtman,” Willis hosted a morning radio show on KBUS-FM for nearly a decade, according to his resume on the social media website LinkedIn.
Paris police received a report of a major traffic collision at 5:44 a.m. on Sept. 29 in the 3900 block of Lamar Avenue, and found Moreno, in serious condition, according to police records.
Paris EMS transported him to Paris Regional Health, where he later died from his injuries Oct. 1, according to a news release.
Willis was arrested the next day and held on a bond totaling $50,000 for a charge of accident involving death and released the following day, according to jail records.
Police spokeswoman Alice Webb said she spoke with a detective and a family member of Moreno, who detailed his injuries and explained why Moreno was walking so early in the morning.
“I spoke with Detective Whitaker and also a family member that stated that Mr. Ismael Moreno liked to go on unsupervised morning walks; sometimes walking to Walmart,” Webb wrote in an email. “I was told by a family member that this had been his morning practice for months.”
Witnesses at the scene of the collision could not identify Willis by name but said they had seen the man usually drive a black van, police spokesman Terry Bull said.
“We had some witnesses at a business in that area,” the officer said. “They thought they knew who the person that hit the victim, but that person normally drove a van with some markings on it, you know, like, a radio station marking.”
The next day, a patrol officer spotted Willis driving a van matching the description Oct. 2 in the 300 block of Bonham Street, Bull said.
After Willis failed to use a turn signal, the officer initiated a traffic stop and eventually arrested Willis on a charge of driving without a license, according to police records.
Bull said police asked if they could go to Willis’s home to check the condition of his personal vehicle, and he declined, telling officers he didn’t want them “anywhere near his house.”
A detective with the department’s criminal investigations division found the car behind his home, leading to a search warrant executed Oct. 9 to recover the vehicle, Bull said.
Later that day, police questioned Willis in the hit-and-run and he confessed to driving the vehicle that hit Moreno, according to court records.
“We got him in and did a taped interview with him, and, during the interview, he confessed to actually hitting the gentleman,” Bull said.
Willis was released from county jail Oct. 3 and rearrested after the revocation of his probation Oct. 9, where he remained until his release on bond Oct. 14, according to jail records.
County Judge Brandon Bell convicted Willis on Aug. 3 of driving while intoxicated and sentenced him to six months of probation, a fine, court costs and restitution to the Texas Department of Public Safety.
If convicted of an accident involving death, Willis faces between two to 10 years in prison and a possible fine of up to $10,000.
https://theparisnews.com/news/dj-arrested-in-connection-with-hit-and-run/article_bf56b2b8-7055-11ee-9983-df3ac3824654.html DJ arrested in connection with hit-and-run | News
