ANNAPOLIS, Md. _ A Laurel man intends to plead guilty Monday to killing five Capital Gazette employees in a mass shooting at the office on June 28, 2018, his defense attorney said.
Police say Jarrod Ramos, 39, blasted his way into the Annapolis office with a pump-action shotgun, fatally shooting John McNamara, Gerald Fischman, Wendi Winters, Rebecca Smith and Rob Hiaasen. Six other employees who were present during the mass shooting survived. Two of the six were injured.
Ramos intends to plead guilty to all 23 counts he's charged with in the case, the defense said. Once a guilty plea is entered, for the plea agreement to become official, Circuit Court Judge Laura Ripken has to accept it.
Shortly after the attack, Ramos pleaded not guilty and on April 29 entered Maryland's version of the insanity plea. At his request, Ripken ordered the trial split into two phases: one to address whether Ramos committed the crime, a second to address whether he was insane at the time he committed the offenses.
With his culpability no longer in doubt, the question now becomes whether he is legally responsible for the crimes. Experts say the burden shifts to the defense to prove Ramos was insane at the time of the attack. Maryland's standard says that to be found legally insane it must be proven that the defendant at the time of the offense, because of a mental disorder or defect, could not understand what they did was wrong or could not stop themselves from doing it.
Ramos has requested a jury trial for the second phase of the trial.
The second phase of trial is likely to happen, said John Robinson and Peter O'Neill, two veteran defense attorneys based in Glen Burnie. They are not representing Ramos.
The guilty plea could be a strategic move to downplay the "horrific nature of the acts he committed," O'Neill said.
"It kind of steals (prosecutors') presentation _ the violence, the shock," Robinson added, noting the state will be able to lay out evidence they would've presented at trial during the plea hearing.
Natalie Finegar, a criminal defense attorney in Baltimore, said his plea will blunt the emotional trauma on jurors. She is not representing Ramos.
"It's a very wise defense maneuver," said Finegar, who is not involved in the case. "As defense attorneys, we're concerned about the trauma that is inflicted on the jury by hearing all of the facts associated with the crime. It can be very difficult for a jury to experience all that trauma and then turn their attention and focus to the mental health of the defendant."
Ramos' intended guilty plea follows more than one year of pretrial hearings _ and various delays _ where prosecutors and defense attorneys argued about what evidence and witnesses would be allowed at trial. Ripken ruled to allow what prosecutors described as damning security footage that shows Ramos working the pump on his shotgun, "methodically hunting," as employees hid or fled for their lives.
Prosecutors said the video showed Ramos checking the flashlight and laser on his tactical shotgun and barricading the backdoor of the office, trapping staffers trying to flee gunfire.
The Capital Gazette is owned by Baltimore Sun Media.
Forensic doctors with the Maryland Department of Health evaluated Ramos and believed he was legally sane when he committed the alleged crimes. Mental health experts hired by Ramos' team of public defenders reached a different conclusion, setting the stage for a contested second-phase of trial.
The shooting shook the Annapolis and Anne Arundel County community, as citizens came out in droves to memorial services, vigils and concerts arranged to honor the victims. Employees made sure the newspaper didn't miss an edition and saw the paper draw national attention for continuing its mission in the wake of tragedy.
Prosecutors indicated early on they were seeking five life sentences without the possibility of parole for Ramos.
