Atwater shooting declared a homicide, police say
2 p.m. Update: The victim of the shooting has been identified as Ethan Morse, son of former Merced County District Attorney Larry Morse II.
Merced County Sheriff Verne Warnke confirmed Morse’s death Friday afternoon.
12:30 p.m. Update:
Atwater police have confirmed the victim in the shooting has died, and the case has been declared a homicide.
11 a.m. Report:
Atwater police reported one man was injured Friday morning in a shooting.
The identity of the victim has not been released, and details are preliminary.
Police responded to the 1800 block of Fir Avenue around 10 a.m. regarding a report of a drive-by shooting and found the victim, who is being tended to by medical personnel.
Three nearby schools were put on lockdown, police said. St. Anthony’s School, Mitchell Senior School and Mitchell K-6 were placed on lockdown after the shooting.
The alleged shooter was described as being a Hispanic male, wearing sunglasses, a black T-shirt and tan pants. He fled eastbound on Fir Street.
This story will be updated.
This story was originally published March 15, 2019 at 10:55 AM.