Judge rules prosecutors can see alleged newspaper shooter’s mental health records

Prosecutors in the case of a man charged with a 2018 mass shooting at an Annapolis, Md., newspaper, will be allowed access to his mental health records since his arrest, a judge ruled Wednesday, according to NBC Washington.

William Davis, an attorney for suspect Jarrod Ramos, argued the information in the records is privileged and would only be relevant if and when a jury finds his client guilty.

{mosads}Judge Laura Ripken disagreed, writing that an insanity plea in the case is “actively being pursued” and the privilege does not apply in such cases, according to NBC.

“These records are highly probative and can help the state,” Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney Anne Leitess said, adding that Ramos’s mental health is “highly relevant,” according to NBC.

Ripken also granted prosecutors access to records for Ramos’s visits in detention with identifying details of the visitors redacted, as well as phone records for calls he has received.

Ramos’s lawyers have withdrawn a subpoena for records relating to his grudge against Rick Hutzell, the editor of the Capital Gazette, after Hutzell’s attorney told them the editor did not have that information.

They are, however, continuing to seek information from Robert Douglas, the newspaper’s defense attorney in a defamation lawsuit Ramos brought, as well as files from a lawyer who represented a woman Ramos was found guilty of harassing.

Ramos spent years railing against the newspaper after it reported on his case in 2011.

Brennan McCarthy, who represented the harassment victim, called the file “an incredibly privileged document” and told the court he plans to seek a protective order against the subpoena, telling Ripken he does not believe the state can legally subpoena the document, according to NBC.