A man from the south suburbs has been sentenced to four years in prison after Naperville police found him last winter with more than 2 pounds of marijuana in his car.
But the man, Printiss L. McMorris, could avoid that sentence if he completes a boot camp-style program for first-time criminal offenders run by the Illinois Department of Corrections.
McMorris, 34, of South Holland, pleaded guilty in DuPage County Circuit Court in Wheaton to a felony charge of the manufacture or delivery of more than 500 but not more than 2,000 grams of marijuana. Three companion traffic citations were dismissed, according to court records.
Paul Darrah, spokesman for State’s Attorney Robert B. Berlin, confirmed McMorris was sentenced to prison Monday by Judge John J. Kinsella.
The sentence has been deferred because Kinsella also found McMorris eligible for enrollment in the IDOC’s “impact incarceration program,” or boot camp. Should McMorris complete it, he will not have to serve the prison time, Darrah said.
He added Kinsella also ordered McMorris to pay $3,182 in fines and court costs.
McMorris and an associate, Treshawn J. Clark, were arrested at 9:05 p.m. Feb. 14, after a traffic stop on Naperville’s northeast side.
Sgt. Bill Davis said members of the Naperville police Special Operations Group curbed a silver, 2005 Nissan near the intersection of Ogden Avenue and Naper Boulevard. McMorris was driving the vehicle, with Clark riding in the front passenger seat, Davis said earlier this year.
SOG members “could smell the odor of cannabis emanating from the inside of the vehicle,” and saw “small amounts of a green, leafy substance on the center console,” Davis said. An Illinois State Police K-9 unit was sent to the area, and the specially trained dog “indicated that drugs were in the vehicle,” he said.
“In the back seat of the vehicle was a suitcase that contained 2.25 pounds of suspected cannabis, having an approximate street value of $10,000,” Davis said. McMorris also “was found to have two plastic baggies containing 3.5 ounces of suspected cannabis” in his pockets, Davis said.
Clark, 20, of South Bend, Ind., pleaded guilty June 10 to the same charge police filed against McMorris. Kinsella sentenced Clark to 72 days in DuPage County Jail, and placed him on two years of probation.