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Morris faces accusations of forgery: News of the arrest comes as pleasant news for supporters of at least one of the Motor Mile Speedway driver's rivals.
(Roanoke Times, The (Roanoke, VA) (KRT) Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) Sep. 1--Philip Morris, the defending Late Model Stock champion and points leader at Motor Mile Speedway, has been charged with two counts of public records forgery and two counts of improper use of an inspection sticker.
Morris, 41, of Ruckersville, was arrested by state police Aug. 21 and released on a personal recognizance bond. Police say Ruckersville inspection station owner Anthony Keith Lawson falsified inspection receipts for equipment sold on the property of Ruckersville Motorsports and Trailer Sales.
Morris, who owns the business along with TrailerTown USA, a smaller branch dealership four miles away, was accused by the state police Wednesday of knowingly putting stickers on trailers that hadn't been inspected.
Morris appeared in Greene County General District Court on Aug. 23. A preliminary hearing was set for 11 a.m. on Nov. 8.
The charges constitute class 4 and class 5 felonies.
Morris said he is innocent.
"I didn't break the law in any shape or form," Morris said in a phone interview Thursday. "I've been assured by my attorney that everything will be dropped against me."
The Roanoke Times first learned of the charges through separate phone calls from an anonymous supporter of Pilot's Jason Lawrence and Lawrence's car owner, Tim Harris.
Harris, who wanted Morris suspended following a NASCAR review of a pit road incident 12 days ago between a Morris crew member and driver Kelly Kingery, said Morris got off the hook in that situation.
"The guy is a snake," Harris said. "The people in the know know what happened. He ain't lily-white like everybody thinks he is."
Harris said he did not regret making the allegations against Morris known.
"Those things are a matter of public record," Harris said. "I didn't make them up or dream them up."
If convicted on all charges, Morris faces up to 22 years in jail and fines up to $107,500.
Morris has notified Motor Mile Speedway officials of the accusations and plans to race in Saturday night's Farm Bureau Insurance 100.
Track competition director Randy Merriman said even if Morris is convicted, he would still be permitted to compete at Motor Mile next season based on Merriman's understanding of the NASCAR rule book.
Morris, in position for a record-tying fourth Late Model Stock championship, leads Lawrence by 16 points.
"Anything that happens outside this fenced area doesn't pertain to what happens inside this fenced area," Merriman said. "That would have no effect on what he does here."
NASCAR spokesman Jeremy Davidson said the sanctioning body could suspend a driver until a felony case was resolved through the court system. Davidson said such situations "are handled on a case-by-case basis."
J.C. Parker of the Virginia State Police said his office received an anonymous tip that Morris' business was selling equipment that hadn't been properly inspected. TrailerTown USA sells trailers under the same banner.
"They were all owned by Mr. Morris," Parker said. "I would assume trailers on both lots are involved but I can't say that 100 percent."
Parker said that "a large volume" of the company's products had been tagged with invalid inspection stickers "several times" between Feb. 1, 2005, the date documented by the Virginia Courts Case information system for the forgery offense, and July 27, 2006, the date of the alleged improper sticker use.
Parker said Ruckersville Motorsports and Trailer Sales received state approval as an inspection station more than five years ago. However, when the store's certified inspector left and no replacement was hired, the certification became invalid.
"They knew the information had been falsified," Parker said. "It jeopardizes the whole integrity of our inspection program."
Morris' defense attorney George Coles refused to comment, but Morris hinted that two Ruckersville Motorsports employees laid off in early July without unemployment benefits might have made the allegations as payback.
As for what has been said about him by his rivals, Morris said he isn't worried.
"I'm not surprised. It's been that way for a while now," Morris said. "Obviously, they'll go to any length to try to eliminate me as their competition. They're doing a good job."
Copyright (c) 2006, The Roanoke Times, Va.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News.
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