A married Pennsylvania state trooper was arrested on Thursday and is being held without bail after he “used substantial force” on his ex-girlfriend to violently detain her and commit her to a mental health facility under false claims.
According to the Dauphin County District Attorney’s Office, Ronald Davis, 37, was charged with “felony strangulation, unlawful restraint, false imprisonment, simple assault, recklessly endangering another person, and official oppression.”
Davis is accused of obtaining an involuntary commitment for her under the Mental Health Procedures Act, falsely claiming his victim, identified by the D.A.’s office as “M.F.,” was suicidal. As a result, the woman, whom he had been dating for approximately four months, was improperly held on an involuntary hold in a mental health treatment facility for five days.
According to court documents, on August 21, Davis, off duty, went to a fellow trooper and claimed “he was seeking assistance with an issue that was ongoing with his former girlfriend.”
M.F. was living in a camper on his property, and the couple were not getting along, Davis said. He showed the trooper a text that he had received from M.F. in which she said she was “going to drive off a cliff.”
Davis asked if officers could have M.F. committed and later petitioned for the involuntary Mental Health Commitment himself using his state-assigned email.
After it was approved, Davis enlisted the help of a civilian and confronted M.F. at a picnic area.
His victim attempted to get away, but Davis grabbed her and “forcefully carried her from the picnic area to her vehicle,” according to the court documents. “Both Davis and [M.F.] ended up on the ground.”
Davis told the civilian to video the altercation. The recordings were submitted as part of the affidavit to the court and released by the D.A.’s office.
(Video: YouTube)
“You’re insane,” M.F. can be heard telling Davis. “You’re absolutely insane … and then you paint me to look insane.”
As he restrains her in wrestling-type holds, she can be heard several times saying that she “can’t breathe.”
At one point, Davis reportedly tells her, “I know you’re not crazy, I’ll paint you as crazy.”
“I know the law,” he told her, according to the affidavit.
Uniformed officers, acting on the approved involuntary commitment, arrived on the scene and took M.F. to Lehigh Vally Hospital-Schuylkill to be evaluated.
M.F. suffered “numerous bruises and marks on her right side, specifically her forehead, torso, back, buttocks, forearm, knee, and lower leg,” the documents state. “She also had bruises and marks on her left knee and lower leg.”
Medical records described the woman as “agreeable with medical personnel and she displayed no suicidal, homicidal thoughts, no major mood symptoms, or overt psychosis,” the documents reveal.
“While Trooper Davis provided text messages from [the victim] … and purported them to be suicidal, he failed to provide the full context of those messages,” the affidavit reads. “In fact, the text messages were the culmination of a larger, domestic dispute between he and the victim. Taken in context, the texts revealed her frustration with Trooper Davis and his controlling behavior … not a true desire to harm herself.”
“Magisterial District Judge Rebecca Margerum conducted a preliminary arraignment on September 21, 2023,” according to the D.A.’s office. “She reviewed the complaint, affidavit including the video, and heard from the defendant.”
“After the arraignment, Judge Margerum determined that no condition or combination of conditions was sufficient to protect the public from Davis,” the office states. “Judge Margerum committed him to Dauphin County Prison without bail.”
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Melissa Fine is the former executive editor of Casino Player, Strictly Slots, and Poker
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1 fan. Melissa currently lives with her dog and two cats in a tiny town in the Sierra
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