Ricardo Medina Jr.

Last updated

Ricardo Medina
Born (1979-01-24) January 24, 1979 (age 45)
OccupationActor
Years active2002–2012
Known for
Criminal chargeVoluntary manslaughter
Criminal penalty6 years in prison
Criminal statusReleased

Ricardo Medina Jr. (often referred to as Rick Medina, born January 24, 1979) is an American former actor. He is best known for his role as Cole Evans, the Red Wild Force Ranger on the TV series Power Rangers Wild Force , and later as Deker, the half-human cursed Nighlok in Power Rangers Samurai . He was in prison for over three years for the voluntary manslaughter of his roommate, Joshua Sutter.

Contents

Early life

Ricardo Medina Jr. was born in Kern County, California, and raised in Downey, California. [1] He is of Puerto Rican descent.

Filmography

YearTitleRoleNotes
2002 Power Rangers Wild Force Cole Evans / Red Wild Force Ranger40 episodes
2003 ER Aidan FenwickEpisode: "No Good Deed Goes Unpunished"
2004 CSI: Miami LanceEpisode: "Money for Nothing"
2005 Kept Contestant (Eliminated 5th)
2005 Confessions of a Pit Fighter David Castillo
2007WitchcraftJack Bell / Drion
2008 Parasomnia Officer
2011–2012 Power Rangers Samurai / Power Rangers Super Samurai Deker24 episodes
2012Bad BloodMark

Killing of Joshua Sutter and conviction

On February 1, 2015, Medina was arrested after he allegedly stabbed to death his 38-year-old roommate, Joshua Sutter, on January 31. [2] Sutter had been stabbed in the abdomen with a medieval "Conan the Barbarian" sword at a home in Green Valley, west of Palmdale, California. Medina called emergency services, and Sutter was pronounced dead upon arrival at a hospital. Medina was initially held on $1 million bail, but no charges were filed against him from the district attorney due to requests on further investigation so he was released on February 3, 2015. Medina claimed that he stabbed Sutter in self-defense after Sutter forced open the door of Medina's bedroom, into which Medina and his girlfriend had retreated after an argument between Medina and Sutter. [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] Medina had lived in the home in Green Valley for approximately two months. [8] [9]

On January 14, 2016, he was arrested again on murder charges in connection with Sutter's death. [10] [11] [12] At that time, Medina faced a possible sentence of life imprisonment with a chance of parole after 26 years with prosecutors planning to ask that Medina be held on $1 million bail. On March 16, 2017, Medina pled guilty to one felony count of voluntary manslaughter. On March 30, 2017, Medina was sentenced to the maximum 6 years in prison. [13] As of 2020 Medina Jr. has been released from prison as revealed in an interview with Wild Force co-star Jack Guzman. [14]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pelican Bay State Prison</span> Prison in California operated by the CDCR

Pelican Bay State Prison (PBSP) is a supermax prison facility in Crescent City, California. The 275-acre (111 ha) prison takes its name from a shallow bay on the Pacific coast, about 2 mi (3.2 km) to the west.

<i>Power Rangers Wild Force</i> Television series

Power Rangers Wild Force is a television series and the tenth season of Power Rangers. It is also the anniversary season of the Power Rangers franchise, based on the 25th Super Sentai series Hyakujuu Sentai Gaoranger, which itself was the 25th anniversary of Super Sentai.

Ryan Keith Skipper was an American man from Polk County, Florida, who was murdered on March 14, 2007, in what authorities declared a hate crime. Skipper's body was discovered on March 15 along a roadside in Wahneta, Florida. Two men were arrested in connection with the crime: William David Brown Jr., and Joseph Bearden, 20 and 21 years old at the time of the incident, respectively. The men were charged with first-degree murder and robbery.

Crystal Gail Mangum is an American former exotic dancer from Durham, North Carolina, United States, who has been incarcerated for murder since 2013. In 2006, she came to attention in national news reports for having made false allegations of rape against lacrosse players in the Duke lacrosse case. Mangum's work in the sex industry as a black woman while the young men she accused were white generated extensive media interest and academic debate about race, class, gender, and the politicization of the justice system.

<i>Power Rangers Samurai</i> Television series

Power Rangers Samurai is the eighteenth season of the children's television series Power Rangers, which is based on the Japanese Super Sentai Series. The season was the first to be produced by SCG Power Rangers, after Saban Brands acquired the franchise. The season marks the franchise's debut on Nickelodeon, premiering on the main network and Nicktoons on February 7, 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of violence against LGBT people in the United States</span>

The history of violence against LGBT people in the United States is made up of assaults on gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender individuals (LGBT), legal responses to such violence, and hate crime statistics in the United States of America. The people who are the targets of such violence are believed to violate heteronormative rules and they are also believed to contravene perceived protocols of gender and sexual roles. People who are perceived to be LGBT may also be targeted for violence. Violence can also occur between couples who are of the same sex, with statistics showing that violence among female same-sex couples is more common than it is among couples of the opposite sex, but male same-sex violence is less common.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Gargiulo</span> American serial killer

Michael Thomas Gargiulo is a convicted American serial killer. He moved to Southern California in the 1990s and gained the nickname The Hollywood Ripper. He was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and sentenced to death on July 16, 2021. He is currently incarcerated in San Quentin State Prison.

On April 15, 2014, Matthew de Grood, son of Calgary Police Inspector Doug de Grood, stabbed five young adults to death at a house party in the Brentwood neighbourhood of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The party was several blocks away from the University of Calgary campus, and held to mark the end of its school year. It was Calgary's deadliest massacre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Broken Arrow murders</span> Mass Stabbing and Familicide in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, US

The Broken Arrow murders took place on July 22, 2015, when five members of the Bever family were murdered in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, United States.

On 3 August 2016, a mass stabbing occurred in Russell Square, London. Six people were stabbed, one fatally, before a suspect, identified as Zakaria Bulhan, was apprehended by police and charged with murder and attempted murder. The media initially linked the stabbing to terrorism, but later shifted its focus to possible mental disorders.

The 2017 Jerusalem Light Rail stabbing was a stabbing attack and suspected act of terrorism that occurred on Good Friday, 14 April 2017, on Jerusalem Light Rail's car. In the attack, a 20 year old British student was stabbed to death by Jamil Tamimi, a Palestinian man. Two others, including a pregnant woman, were injured in the incident. The attacker was arrested and was deemed competent to stand trial.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Murder of Tessa Majors</span> Murder of a college student in New York City

The murder of Tessa Majors occurred near Morningside Park in Morningside Heights, Manhattan, on December 11, 2019. Majors, an eighteen-year-old student at Barnard College, was attacked and stabbed by three teenagers as part of a robbery. Majors was discovered collapsed and bleeding on a staircase exiting Morningside Park and transported to a nearby hospital, ultimately succumbing to the injuries.

The Toronto machete attack was a misogynist terrorist attack in a Toronto erotic spa on 24 February 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 Reading stabbings</span> Stabbing attack in Reading, England

On 20 June 2020, shortly before 19:00 BST, a man with a knife attacked people who were socialising in Forbury Gardens, Reading, Berkshire, United Kingdom. Three men died from their wounds, and three other people were seriously injured. A 25-year-old Libyan male refugee named Khairi Saadallah was arrested nearby shortly afterwards. Saadallah was a former member of the Libyan militant group Ansar al-Sharia. He was charged with three counts of murder and three counts of attempted murder; he pleaded guilty. In January 2021, Saadallah was sentenced to a whole-life term.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">August 2021 Tokyo stabbings</span> 2021 mass stabbing incident in Tokyo, Japan

A mass stabbing incident occurred 6 August 2021, on a commuter train in the Odakyu Electric Railway in Tokyo, Japan. 10 people were injured in the incident.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeff German</span> American journalist (1953–2022)

Jeffrey Michael German was an American investigative reporter who wrote for the Las Vegas Review-Journal and the Las Vegas Sun, his career spanning four decades. He was stabbed to death in 2022. Elected official Robert Telles, whom German had investigated and reported on, is accused of his murder.

In the early hours of November 13, 2022, four University of Idaho students were fatally stabbed in an off-campus residence in Moscow, Idaho. On December 30, 28-year-old Bryan Christopher Kohberger was arrested in Monroe County, Pennsylvania, on four counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony burglary. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Killing of Ken Lee</span> 2022 stabbing in Toronto, Ontario

Ken Lee, a 59-year-old man, was fatally stabbed outside the Strathcona Hotel, on York Street, Toronto, at 12:17 am on December 18, 2022. Eight teenage girls were charged with his murder.

References

  1. "Interview with Rick Medina". YouTube . August 26, 2012. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  2. "Former 'Power Rangers' Actor Arrested For Murder". January 19, 2016. Archived from the original on February 6, 2016. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
  3. Stallworth, Leo (February 3, 2015). "Ex-Power Ranger released from jail after no charges filed; DA requests further investigation". Eyewitness News - ABC7. Archived from the original on February 3, 2015. Retrieved February 3, 2015.
  4. "Power Rangers Samurai Star Ricardo Medina Jr. Arrested For Stabbing Roommate to Death With Sword: Report". US Magazine. February 1, 2015. Archived from the original on February 2, 2015. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
  5. Taylor, Kellu (February 1, 2015). "'Power Rangers' Actor Accused Of Fatally Stabbing Roommate With Sword". My FOX LA. Archived from the original on February 2, 2015. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
  6. Parkinson, Hannah Jane (February 2, 2015). "Red Power Ranger actor charged with murdering roommate with sword". The Guardian . Archived from the original on February 2, 2015. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
  7. Pamer, Melissa; Wynter, Kareen (January 14, 2016). "'Power Rangers' Actor Charged With Murder in Sword-Stabbing Death of Roommate: DA". KTLA. Archived from the original on February 4, 2016. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
  8. Suter, Leanne (February 1, 2015). "FORMER POWER RANGER FATALLY STABS ROOMMATE WITH SWORD IN GREEN VALLEY, LASD CONFIRMS". ABC 7. Archived from the original on February 2, 2015. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
  9. Brucculieri, Julia (January 14, 2016). "Former 'Power Rangers' Star Ricardo Medina Jr. Charged With Murder". Huffington Post . Archived from the original on January 15, 2016. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  10. Stedman, Alex (January 14, 2016). "'Power Rangers' star Ricardo Medina charged with murder". Fox News . Archived from the original on January 15, 2016. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  11. "Former 'Power Rangers' Star Ricardo Medina Jr. Charged With Murder". The Huffington Post . January 14, 2016. Archived from the original on January 15, 2016. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  12. "Ex 'Power Ranger' Ricardo Medina charged with murder in roommate's stabbing". Fox News Latino . January 14, 2016. Archived from the original on January 15, 2016. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  13. "Ex-Power Ranger Ricardo Medina is sentenced to six years for killing his roommate". BBC Newsbeat. March 31, 2017. Archived from the original on March 31, 2017. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  14. "Jack Guzman Interview (Power Rangers Wild Force) - YouTube". YouTube .