Capital Gazette Shooting Suspect Jarrod Ramos Found Legally Sane

ANNAPOLIS, MD — With less than two weeks before the trial of Jarrod Ramos, the man charged in the shooting deaths of five people at the Capital Gazette newspaper office last year, a psychiatrist who examined Ramos has determined he is legally sane. According to WBAL, Ramos' attorneys plan to mount an insanity defense.

Ramos has been charged with killing five people inside the Capital Gazette newsroom during a mass shooting in June 2018. He pleaded not guilty and not criminally responsible to 23 charges, including five counts of first-degree murder.

"The report from the Maryland Department of Mental Health indicates the defendant is criminally responsible," Judge Laura Ripkin said during a pretrial hearing.

The report provided by Clifton T. Perkins Hospital is almost 200 pages long and documents the number of tests performed. Ramos was interviewed multiple times during the mental health evaluation process.

Before learning about the report's findings, prosecutors argued for their team of experts to evaluate Ramos once more. Several days ago, defense attorneys revealed a diagnosis of autism during a pretrial hearing, WBAL reported.

"The defense has introduced a new flavor of mental disorder, a brand-new diagnosis from a different set of experts," prosecutor Anne Colt Leitess said.

"This isn't a new diagnosis," public defender William Davis argued. "This is a different diagnosis."

The three-day jury selection process begins Oct. 30. More than 300 Anne Arundel County residents who already filled out questionnaires will return for individual interviews to help narrow down the pool of potential jurors.

See more:

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• Mikulski Seeks Medal Of Freedom For Slain Capital Gazette Writer
• Use Of Capital Gazette Shooting Video Debated In Court
• Mental Evaluation Ordered For Accused Capital Gazette Gunman
• Attorneys For Accused Newspaper Shooter Want Trial Split In Half
• Ramos Must Turn Over Jail Treatment Records: Newspaper Shooting
• Mental Health Evaluation For Jarrod Ramos Has Been Sealed
• Capital Gazette Shooting Video To Be Shown In Murder Trial