Judge Rules On Discussing Insanity Plea In Newspaper Attack
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (WJZ) — Another pretrial hearing was held Friday in the Jarrod Ramos case- he's accused of killing five employees at the Capital Gazette newspaper last year.
Four new motions sat in front of a judge- some coming from the prosecutor, some coming from the defense team. All this happening while Ramos sat quietly, waiting for court proceedings to be over.
Ramos faces 23 criminal charges, five of which are first-degree murder. Prosecutors say he planned an attack on the Capital Gazette in June of 2018 after a lengthy feud that the state says spiraled out of control.
Police report Ramos opened fire on the newsroom and allegedly used a shotgun to kill five people who worked there.
A number of hearings have been held since Ramos' arrest. One of which separated the upcoming trial into two parts because Ramos pled not criminally responsible, which is Maryland's version of pleading insanity.
Friday, a judge touched on how to word argument and questions because of the split trial. Judge Laura Ripken directed attorneys to avoid referring to his mental health or his plea of not criminally responsible in the first phase of his trial.
Ripken also asked attorneys on both sides to review model questions for prospective jurors from the Maryland State Bar Association to prepare for jury selection, which is set for Oct. 30. The trial is scheduled to start Nov. 4.
