A Connecticut man was convicted and sentenced for second-degree assault and first-degree unlawful restraint. Carlos Ramos threatened the life of his girlfriend, punched and kicked her on the ground and then forced himself upon her; he did not face rape charges because she allegedly consented. He invoked the “dumbbell defense” blaming his behavior on his use of anabolic steroids (“Victim asks judge to go easy on abuser,” August 30).
“I was not like that before I did steroids,” Carlos Ramos said. “I know I hit her, but I don’t remember doing it.”
Judge Michael Sheldon, of the Litchfield Superior Court, agreed that anabolic steroids caused Ramos to beat his girlfriend.
“No one has a right to beat anyone – man or woman, adult or child,” Judge Michael Sheldon said. “Your conduct, in my experience, was consistent with ‘roid rage.’” (emphasis added)
Judge Shelton believed the following actions were consistent with “roid rage.”
Jealous that she was seeing someone else, Ramos choked the 25-year-old city woman in her apartment and threatened to kill her on Nov. 18, 2006. He punched and kicked her while she was on the floor on her back, and he threw her boot at her face, she told police. The victim told police Ramos forced himself on her, but later said she consented to sex, according to court documents. Later Ramos was arrested again after he reportedly contacted the victim against court orders.
The Register Citizen believes that Judge Shelton reduced the defendant’s sentence by one year, in part, because of the defendant’s “sincerity” about steroids causing his behavior.
Never mind the fact that the defendant previously served nine years in prison for manslaughter or has unresolved mental health issues (according to his attorney).
Ramos served nine years in a Massachusetts jail after being convicted of manslaughter when he was 17 years old. But his attorney, Lenny Crone, said Ramos didn’t kill anyone. He just harbored his cousin who was wanted by authorities.
“He comes from a broken home, lacks education and vocational training,” Crone said. “I think he has some unchecked mental health issues.”
Troubled youth? Broken home? No education? No job skills? Psychological problems? Manslaughter? Almost a decade in prison?
No. Let’s talk about steroids instead.
About the author
Millard writes about anabolic steroids and performance enhancing drugs and their use and impact in sport and society. He discusses the medical and non-medical uses of anabolic-androgenic steroids while advocating a harm reduction approach to steroid education.
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