A judge on Friday denied a request to lower the $1 million bail set for a former "Power Rangers" actor charged with killing his roommate with a sword last year.
Ricardo Medina, dressed in a yellow jumpsuit, appeared at a bail hearing at a Lancaster courthouse, where a judge listened to an argument from Medina's lawyer that his client was not a threat to the public.
Medina was arrested in January on suspicion of stabbing his roommate, Joshua Sutter, several times in the abdomen a year earlier at their house in Green Valley, a mountain town about 70 miles north of Los Angeles.
Prosecutors allege Medina deliberately killed Sutter in a rage.
"There is not one stab wound - there are a total of 10 stab wounds to the victim, and each stab wound is another wielding of a knife in 'Power Ranger' style, no pun in intended," Deputy District Attorney Tannaz Mokayef said.
Medina's attorney, Alan Bell, claimed in court there was only one stab wound and the rest were the result of dog bites and an error on the coroner's part.
"I have the photos and I tried to show those to the people," he said. "They were not interested because it was inconsistent with their theory of the events."
Also presented in court was a protective order against Sutter by his own sister. Medina's attorney claimed it showed Sutter was an aggressor.
Sutter's sister, Rachel Kennedy, told NBC4 it was a misunderstanding.
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"I wanted to teach him a lesson as a big sister and I mean, I regret doing it but I wanted to teach my little brother a lesson," Kennedy said.
Prosecutors also presented new evidence: a 911 call Medina allegedly made right after the stabbing.
"First thing he says is, 'I was in fear for my safety,' and that's all he keeps saying," Mokayef said.
The prosecutor suggests Medina was already attempting a self-defense claim, but she also detailed the screams in the background from the victim, who shouted it was Medina who attacked.
Kennedy said her brother was supposed to evict Medina from the property the family owned and used to rescue dogs. She says Medina was living there for free while caring for the animals.
"I'm just so glad he's staying in jail," Kennedy said. "That's where he deserves to be and that's where I hope he spends the rest of his life."
