Rachel Kennedy is still haunted by the death of her brother, Joshua Sutter, who was fatally stabbed with a sword by his roommate, “Power Rangers” actor Ricardo Medina Jr.
“I don’t understand how, especially in California, someone could get away [with this],” Kennedy told Fox News Digital. “… I guess I’ll never know. Maybe, hopefully, one day I will know. What would persuade anyone to release such a madman, a monster? What are the factors? Was it because he was somewhat of a celebrity?… It just makes no sense.”
Medina’s case is being explored on Monday’s episode of Investigation Discovery’s (ID), “Hollywood Demons.” The show, featuring commentary by Dr. Drew Pinsky, aims to explore the “scandals of life in the spotlight.”
“My brother has been portrayed as something he’s not,” said Kennedy. “He’s a victim… And I’m sticking up for him.”
Medina doesn’t appear in the series. Fox News Digital reached out to the 47-year-old and a rep for comment.
Stanley L. Friedman, Medina’s attorney at the time, told Fox News Digital: “I was hired by Ricardo Medina after he was held to answer at a preliminary hearing for murder and a related weapon enhancement. Ricky was facing a sentence of 26 years to life. After I was hired, the defense team investigated the facts. We presented defenses and mitigating circumstances to the district attorney’s office and reached a settlement of the case for one count of voluntary manslaughter with a determinate sentence of six years.
“The sentence was accepted by the court. This was a favorable outcome for Ricky as he already had significant custody credits. Given the circumstances, the defense believed this was a just result.”
According to the episode, Kennedy met Medina on a dating app in 2014. They quickly bonded over their mutual love of dogs. She had a pet shop. At the time, she said Medina was a dog trainer and didn’t mention he was an actor.
Medina played the Red Lion Wild Force Ranger on “Power Rangers Wild Force” in 2002. He was the voice of Deker on “Power Rangers Samurai” in 2011 and 2012 and also appeared in such shows as “ER” and “CSI: Miami.”
“I thought we were a great match, whether we were to be friends or more than that,” she said. “I just thought he really loved animals and seemed to know a lot about dogs. My first impression was really good.”
After two dates, Kennedy felt they ultimately weren’t romantically compatible. But soon after, in early 2015, Kennedy was thinking of creating a sanctuary for rescued dogs. Medina came to mind. She reached out to him.
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The episode shared that at the time, Medina had a new girlfriend but seemed eager to help Kennedy bring her dream to life.
Kennedy claimed to Fox News Digital that Medina came up with the idea of renting a ranch in California’s Green Valley that was available. It would be an ideal space where dogs can live and get properly trained.
“I thought it was perfect,” said Kennedy. “I said, ‘I’ll send the lease. I just need you to help take care of the animals.’ He was down for that. It seemed like the perfect situation. I got the property, signed the lease and he moved in. The deal was he would live for free and, in return, he would help take care of the animals. But probably within a week or two, I realized that I may have not made the best decision.”
According to the episode, Medina would lock himself in his room and barely come out. He was said to be fiercely protective of his space. Kennedy claimed to Fox News Digital the property was “always in disarray” and “filthy.”
“I felt so bad having put my animals in a position where they were neglected and being left alone, not loved and cared for properly,” she said.
Kennedy claimed that when she finally confronted Medina, he threatened that he would release her animals into the wild so they could be eaten by coyotes.
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“I panicked,” she said. “…The conversation was very scary. It was not a conversation with a person that I thought I knew. He was very, very angry. He was screaming at me almost like a different person. That’s when I asked my brother to please go up to the ranch, move in there and make sure the animals would be OK. I thought that would be the next best thing, to have someone supervise him, which would be my brother.”
Kennedy said that the next day, when she dropped off her sibling at the ranch, Medina appeared. He apologized profusely for his behavior. But the new living arrangement didn’t improve matters, Kennedy claimed.
“My brother wasn’t the type of person to talk smack about people behind their backs, but the only thing that he would say to me was, ‘I just wish he would help me.’ My brother was lonely up there, and he wanted to be his friend. He wanted him to participate and come out of the room and share duties. Ricardo just wouldn’t do any of that.”
“My brother loved it up there,” Kennedy reflected. “… He never once complained to me about Ricardo. He did this to other people, to his girlfriend, the landlord. But he never wanted me to be stressed about anything. He would just tell me how great things were and how he loved being up there. And how he wished he could be Ricardo’s friend.”
But Kennedy wanted Medina out. Kennedy claimed that she started planning with the landlord to evict Medina. There are emails, she claimed. The plan was to kick him out on Feb. 1, 2015. Then, the landlord would reassign the lease to Kennedy and Sutter. Her brother, she said, was content with the idea of staying at the ranch.
They were one day too late, said Kennedy.
On the afternoon of Jan. 31, 2015, Sutter was on the phone with his father. He was talking about ways to grow organic vegetables to feed the dogs at the ranch. Medina’s girlfriend had stopped by.
After the phone call, an argument arose between Medina and Sutter. Inside the home, police said Medina stabbed Sutter with a sword.
Medina called the police, and first responders took Sutter to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead, People magazine reported. Medina was arrested.
Kennedy said she was aware that Medina had the weapon in his possession.
“I had brought my brother a BB gun to scare coyotes away,” she explained. “I asked Ricardo one day if he wanted me to get [him] a BB gun as well to scare the coyotes. He said, ‘No, I have my sword with me always. I don’t need any other weapons.’ I didn’t know where he kept it – he didn’t mention that. But he said all the protection that he needed was that sword.”
“I still haven’t learned how to cope,” she admitted. “… There are no support groups you can join or anyone you can call to talk about having a loved one killed in this way… It was so horrific.”
“He was bigger than my brother,” Kennedy continued. “He could have just pushed my brother to the side. He could have just left – the home has three exits. Instead, he chose to pick up a sword and plunge it into my brother’s body. So no, coping isn’t something that I think I’ve done yet because I don’t know how to make it make sense.”
People magazine reported Medina’s attorney was adamant that Sutter was only stabbed once, and the other wounds were dog bites. An autopsy report revealed that Sutter sustained 10 sharp force injuries, ABC7 reported. The report said there were multiple hand injuries consistent with defensive wounds, as well as a stab wound through the abdomen.
Medina was released when prosecutors determined there wasn’t enough evidence to charge him, People magazine reported. Less than a year later, he was re-arrested and charged with murder.
Friedman said that Medina and Sutter argued over the actor’s girlfriend. He said it intensified when the couple fled to Medina’s bedroom and locked the door. When Sutter burst through the room, a struggle ensued. Friedman said that Medina, fearing for his life and his girlfriend’s safety, stabbed him with his sword in self-defense.
Medina was initially charged with first-degree murder. He then pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter to avoid a possible life sentence. In 2017, he was sentenced to six years in prison. According to the episode, Medina was released on parole in 2020.
Medina previously spoke to reporters and apologized for the incident.
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“I’m very, very, very sorry for what occurred,” he said, as quoted by The Hollywood Reporter. “My heart goes out to the Sutter family.”
Kennedy said she’s been compelled to speak over the years to ensure that Sutter wouldn’t be forgotten.
“I remember going online and seeing people joking about the way my brother’s life was taken,” said Kennedy. “They were saying it was my brother’s fault and that he deserved it… I was not going to let people think that my brother deserved this… This didn’t have to happen.”
