Joliet Sex Assault Defendant Lived In Mexico 'His Whole Life': Lawyer

JOLIET — The Will County State's Attorney's Office was successful in its petition to deny pretrial release for 18-year-old Joliet sexual assault defendant Jose Ramirez-Rios.

Last weekend, Joliet police booked Ramirez-Rios into the Will County Jail on three counts of criminal sexual assault, aggravated criminal sexual abuse, criminal sexual abuse and aggravated domestic battery.

Prosecutors informed Will County Judge Brian Barrett that the 18-year-old sexual assault defendant "had lived in Mexico his whole life until 16 years old. He is purported to (have been) attending multiple stints of drug rehab for addiction, alleged to be crystal meth. His connections to the US are his family members..."

According to Will County's prosecutors, Joliet police responded to the sexual assault call on Dec. 27 and the officers learned that a girl who just turned 14 told her family that Ramirez-Rios sexually assaulted her the previous day.

"She indicated that he pulled her hair in the basement where she and other siblings were, and she went into her room on the second floor of the home to get away from him," court documents show. "He told the younger siblings he was going to her room to scare her. He then entered her room and locked the door. He pushed her on the bed and started to choke her and she felt that she could not breathe."

After Ramirez-Rios undressed, "she tried to scream but he started choking her again," the petition to deny pretrial release noted. "He told her to shut up in Spanish and put his pants back on. He threatened her, telling her not to tell the parents."

According to prosecutors, Ramirez-Rios later told Joliet police that he had sex with the 14-year-old girl and "he claimed it was consensual."

According to the Joliet police news release from spokesman Dwayne English, at 6:39 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 27, officers responded to a residence for a report of a sexual assault. The officers learned that Ramirez-Rios had allegedly sexually assaulted a 14-year-old girl by force, during the evening hours of Dec. 26, police said.

Ramirez-Rios indicated his involvement in the assault to the officers, and he was placed into custody without incident, according to English.

Following a forensic interview of the victim conducted by the Will County Children’s Advocacy Center, the charges were approved by the Will County State’s Attorney Office.