Suffolk jury acquits Mastic Beach man accused of murder charges in death of Greenport man

A jury has acquitted a Mastic Beach man after a two-week trial on charges he killed a Greenport man last summer.

Hraklis Morris, 47, of Mastic Beach, was cleared of second-degree murder and first-degree manslaughter charges Thursday evening in the death of Modesto Salguero-Guillen, 48, of Greenport, Katherine Fernandez, his defense attorney, confirmed Friday.

Newsday previously reported that Southold Town Police officers found a "seriously injured" Salguero-Guillen at the Lakeside Garden Apartments in Greenport on June 30. Salguero-Guillen died at South Shore University Hospital in Bay Shore three days later.

Morris was arrested and charged for Salguero-Guillen’s death on July 12, 2023. Immediately following Morris’ indictment on July 21, 2023, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said "Morris allegedly attacked and beat [the decedent] who sustained such severe injuries that he was hospitalized for days prior to his death."

But at around 5 p.m. Thursday, 25 hours after they entered deliberation, Fernandez said the jury found her not client not guilty before Acting Supreme Court Justice Steven A. Pilewski in county court in Riverhead. She said an acquittal in a murder trial in Suffolk County is "rare."

Among other factors, Fernandez attributes the jury’s quick decision to evidence that Salguero-Guillen had alcohol in his system and many "underlying health issues," including cirrhosis and steatosis. She added that officials "should have done more of an investigation into their own witness," who Fernandez said "placed the original 911 call claiming the decedent fell and busted his head open on the sidewalk."

"We were able to prove that there was definitely reasonable doubt from all aspects," Fernandez said.

"The initial reports were that [Morris] beat [Salguero-Guillen] to death ... We were able to poke enough holes through all aspects, from whether [Morris] could be ID'd correctly, but also whether what he did, if you want to believe that’s what he did, was the actual cause of death."

A spokesperson for Tierney said his office would not comment on the acquittal when reached Friday afternoon.

Morris’ nearly year-and-a-half in the criminal justice system took a toll, Fernandez said. At his initial arrest arraignment in Southold Town Court, Morris, who Fernandez said has diabetes and other underlying medical conditions, passed out due to the "pressure," needed orange juice, and was taken to Peconic Bay Medical Center.

After his time behind bars, the defense attorney said her client must "readjust to life."

"He just hopes to rebuild his relationships with his family and hopefully try to get some sort of relationship with his daughter," Fernandez said. "Him and his wife have to try to get back to normal."