HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — A judge ruled Wednesday that the 28-year-old man accused of intentionally ramming his car into two Hillsborough County deputies is mentally incompetent to stand trial at this time.
Ralph Bouzy was set to appear in court at 9 a.m. Wednesday. According to the sheriff's office, he refused to be transported and never showed up to the courthouse. The judge then ruled Bouzy wasn't competent enough to stand trial and ordered him to a secured hospital for treatment. The order keeps him there until he can be deemed competent for trial.
He's been held in jail without bond since his arrest. Bouzy entered a plea of not guilty to all charges, according to court records. He faces three counts of attempted first-degree murder of a law enforcement officer, two counts of battery of a law enforcement officer and one count of battery.
On Nov. 9, Bouzy reportedly caused severe injury to two deputies after hitting them with his car while they were responding to a call from his mother. His mother, whom Bouzy lived with, had said he was acting "irrational and violent," leaving her in fear for her life.
According to a motion filed in court, Bouzy had previously been diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, meaning that he showed symptoms of both schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. The motion also said that in the days leading up to Bouzy's attack on deputies, his mother had called crisis services and petitioned for her son to be given emergency services due to his behavior. She also said he had run out of his prescription medication.
Bouzy was determined to have a violent criminal history, having previously been arrested for three felonies and 14 misdemeanors.
The deputies he hit, Deputy Manny Santos and Corporal Carlos Brito survived their injuries, which included severe leg injuries that required surgery. Both have been released from the hospital, but have a long road to recovery ahead, the sheriff's office said.
10 Tampa Bay's Andrew Polino contributed to this report.