Fresno man found not guilty because insane, gets 31 to life for mother’s death
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- Brad Ramirez was sentenced to 31-years-to-life for the 2025 death of his mother.
- Judge Daniel Brickey ruled Ramirez had not been restored to sanity after evaluations.
- Ramirez will serve his sentence at one of the California State Hospitals for treatment.
A Fresno man with a history of mental illness was sentenced to 31 years to life in prison Friday for the beating death of his 62-year-old mother.
Prosecutor Kelly Smith said Brad Ramirez, 35, was supposed to be having dinner with his mother, Shirla Ramirez, in her central Fresno home on Jan. 20, 2025. But for an undetermined reason, Ramirez attacked his mother with a hammer, killing her. Ramirez died of blunt force trauma.
Her son was arrested and charged with his mother’s killing. But a question arose about his mental competency.
Superior Court Judge Daniel Brickey said Ramirez was found not guilty by reason of insanity after being evaluated by two psychiatrists. Ramirez also was evaluated by the Department of State Hospitals’ Conditional Release Program, which prepared a placement evaluation for the court.
“Based upon those previously referenced reports, as well as the placement evaluation, this court finds that the defendant has not been restored to sanity,” Brickey ruled.
Ramirez will serve his sentence at a state hospital where the “focus of treatment is to stabilize their condition and return them to trial competency so the court may adjudicate their pending charges,” according to the California Department of State Hospitals.
Clad in a yellow jumpsuit, usually reserved for high-risk inmates, Ramirez stood as his aunt, Kerry Bash, tearfully spoke about being “unable to wrap my head around what happened.”
She said the family agonized over not knowing who killed their loved one.
“We were living in shock and confusion waiting for answers, and then the truth finally emerged,” she said. “Imagining what she had endured has been unbearable.”
Court records show Ramirez had been arrested several times in 2016 for felony assault but was found not guilty by reason of insanity. He was sent to a state hospital in San Bernardino County, where he was treated for several years.
