Man gets 10 years for carjacking a grandmother

Richard Morse, 49, of Auburn, pleaded guilty yesterday to a variety of charges related to a failed attempt to steal the woman's car on Province Street in Boston on Nov. 2, 2009, the Suffolk County District Attorney's office reports.

Morse was then sentenced to 10 years in state prison. The DA's office provided this account:

Assistant District Attorney Gregory Henning of [DA Dan] Conley's Major Felony Bureau told the court that the 61-year-old victim had just left her daughter's Boston apartment and was entering her car on Province Street when Morse grabbed her, entered the car, and tried to push her over the vehicle’s center console and into the passenger's seat. When she screamed, he punched her and threatened to kill her.

The victim exited the car and continued to scream. A nearby valet heard her cries and approached the vehicle armed only with an umbrella. When Morse couldn't locate the victim's car keys, he also exited and threatened the valet with a knife before bolting from the scene with the victim's purse.

As the valet gave chase, another civilian in the area notified a Boston Police officer working a paid detail nearby. The officer and second civilian chased after Morse, who by that time was brandishing a knife at the valet at the end of Pi Alley.