Charges ramp up to murder for Ravizza

A court-ordered psychiatric evaluation in Massachusetts will also continue.

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Jared Ravizza appeared at Plymouth District Court on Monday. —Eunki Seonwoo

Updated July 2

Connecticut police have issued a warrant for the arrest of Jared Ravizza on a charge of murder. 

While police have connected Ravizza to the death of his roommate in their Deep River home earlier this spring, a court clerk announced that the seasonal Island resident would be charged with the murder during a Plymouth District Court hearing on Monday.

The murder charge is related to an incident in which Connecticut State Police found the bodies of 70-year-old Bruce Feldman, who is believed to be Ravizza’s roommate, along with two dogs, at the suspect’s residence on May 25. Police responded to the property after neighbors reported a disturbance, after Ravizza allegedly used a shovel to smash one of their windows. 

26-year-old Ravizza, who has ties to the Vineyard, is also facing several charges in Massachusetts after a string of violent attacks on the same day. He is accused of stabbing multiple victims in a Braintree movie theater, and employees at a Plymouth McDonald’s, before crashing his Porsche in Sandwich.

Monday’s Connecticut arrest warrant — issued by Middletown Superior Court — listed four charges against Ravizza: murder, criminal mischief, and two counts of animal cruelty.

Ravizza remains in Massachusetts at Bridgewater State Hospital for now, and will need to be extradited to Connecticut to be arraigned in person. According to Connecticut State Police, since there are active cases in Massachusetts still pending, it is uncertain when the extradition will take place. 

Connecticut State Police have yet to release details of the alleged homicide. Their investigation is ongoing, and the department declined to comment. 

But reports from Braintree and West Tisbury Police offer some details into the investigation. Reports state that Ravizza and Feldman had known each other for a few years before Feldman was found dead in their Deep River residence. Before Ravizza left Connecticut, he allegedly smashed out the window of a house belonging to neighbors he was feuding with. The homeowners told police that Ravizza had smashed the window. When checking his residence, law enforcement found Feldman’s body and the two dogs. 

A Braintree report states that a few months before the alleged May murder, the two men had developed a friendship and became roommates. They also owned two dogs, and engaged in a lot of drug use over time, according to police. 

West Tisbury reports show Feldman had tried contacting Ravizza on the Island twice in 2023. In July 2023, Feldman was looking for Ravizza in West Tisbury, with hopes of staying with him for the summer following a divorce. At the time, Ravizza told police that Feldman was an acquaintance, and while they had stayed together in West Tisbury for a short vacation, he had not given the older man permission to stay with him over the summer. 

Later that year in December, Feldman requested a welfare check on Ravizza in West Tisbury, worried he was paranoid and hallucinating on psychedelic drugs. 

When police checked on Ravizza in December, they were met by his father, Jason. Jason told police they had had issues with Feldman in the past, and that he was not welcome in their home. West Tisbury Police also reported Jared was in “good spirits and good health” during the visit. Police later called Feldman to tell him Jared Ravizza was fine. However, during that follow-up call, Feldman ranted to police he was worried that Jared was a CIA test subject, and that the younger man was hallucinating. 

The Connecticut arrest warrant was revealed during a Monday status review hearing at Plymouth District Court in Massachusetts, when a court clerk announced the charges Ravizza was facing. Connecticut State Police had previously stated that unspecific charges were pending. 

On Monday, Ravizza was ordered to be sent back to Bridgewater State Hospital, a medium-security facility surrounded by fencing with barbed wires that houses male patients. Hospital staff will continue an evaluation on whether Ravizza can be held responsible for the crimes of which he is accused. 

Ravizza appeared in Plymouth wearing a gray T shirt; the roots of his hair had turned brown, while most of his shoulder-length hair remained bleach blond. 

Sean O’Neill, Ravizza’s attorney, requested his client be sent back to Bridgewater State Hospital so a “criminal responsibility evaluation” could be completed. Judge Scott Peterson agreed to the request.

Attorneys had reviewed a report about Ravizza’s evaluation from the hospital, and held a sidebar discussion with Peterson. The report was not immediately available.

Ravizza spoke briefly with O’Neill as he was being escorted out of the Plymouth courtroom by court officers on Monday.

Ravizza is facing numerous criminal charges in Massachusetts, including assault to murder and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. He has pleaded not guilty in both Plymouth District Court and Quincy District Court. 

The defendant’s next Plymouth court hearing is scheduled for July 8. Ravizza was originally ordered by Peterson to appear in Plymouth on July 17, but the hospital requested an earlier court date. 

Ravizza is also scheduled at Quincy District Court on July 11 for the charges related to the stabbing at the Braintree movie theater. He is also scheduled to appear at Edgartown District Court on July 22 for allegedly assaulting his father and wrecking his father’s home office in West Tisbury this past April.

The defendant is currently facing a total of 18 charges from the four courts: four from Connecticut, two from Edgartown District Court, four from Plymouth District Court, and eight from Quincy District Court. 

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