Press Release: KENNETH MASSEY JR. SENTENCED TODAY TO 21 YEARS IN PRISON 10/26/11
October 26, 2011
PLACER COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY
R. Scott Owens
District Attorney
10810 Justice Center Drive, Suite 240
Roseville, CA 95678
916-543-8000
October 26, 2011
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts: Jeff Wilson, Assistant District Attorney
916-543-8000
Sacramento man sentence to 21 years in prison for the 2009 killing of a Loomis resident
A 24 year old Sacramento man was sentenced today to 21 years in prison for his part in the September 2009 killing of Loomis resident Rudy Ramos. Placer County Judge Colleen Nichols sentenced Kenneth Massey Jr. after the defendant, pursuant to a plea agreement, pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter as well as three counts of influencing the testimony of a witness.
The body of Rudy Ramos was discovered in his Loomis residence on September 14, 2009, bludgeoned to death. Through cell phone records, the defendant, and co-defendant Anthony Cordero, were placed at the victim’s home on September 12, 2009, at the approximate time of death.
Deputy District Attorney Jeff Wood commented that despite the nearly 11,000 pages of information gathered, and a year and a half of investigation, the case remained largely circumstantial and hinged on the testimony of Massey’s co-defendant Anthony Cordero. Wood further stated that while we were able to establish Massey had a motive to commit the crime and that both defendants were at scene near the time of the murder, it was more problematic to determine the sequence of events immediately before the murder. The plea agreement reached reflects the above difficulty while at the same time achieves a lengthy prison sentence for Massey and justice for Mr. Ramos and his family.
The co-defendant, Anthony Cordero, pled guilty to Battery Causing Serious Bodily Injury and Accessory to the killing of Ramos and will be sentenced on October 27, 2011.
The District Attorney’s Office is ethically obligated to comply with California Rule of Professional Conduct 5-120. This rule limits the office’s ability to comment on pending criminal matters. The Office is ethically prohibited from making any statement that has a “substantial likelihood of materially prejudicing an adjudicative proceeding in the matter.” Violation of ethical rules by our office can result in court sanctions and/or disciplinary action by the California State Bar.