Married Pennsylvania cop faces false imprisonment charges for ‘improperly committing his ex to a mental health facility’ after shocking 12-minute arrest video and allegedly saying: ‘I’ll paint you as crazy’

A Pennsylvania State Police trooper is facing charges of strangulation and false imprisonment after allegedly restraining his ex-girlfriend in a “wrestling style” and transferring her to a mental health facility under false claims.

Ronald Keith Davis, 37, was arrested on September 21. He is accused of abusing his authority to detain his girlfriend in a medical facility against her will for four months.

The officer, who is married with children, filed a petition for an involuntary mental health commitment for the woman after claiming she was suicidal, according to an affidavit of probable cause.

On Monday, August 21, Davis sought help from fellow troopers and advised that the woman – referred to as MF by the prosecutor, but whose full name was provided in the affidavit – was living in an RV on his property.

The officer said they were not getting along and that “their relationship had deteriorated.”

He claimed he did not allow the woman to retrieve her belongings from the property because she was behaving erratically.

To prove his point, he showed several text messages, including messages that read “I think I’m going to drive off a cliff” and “My mental health doesn’t matter, I’m a useless, old, stupid, uneducated piece of shit shit.’ ‘

On the advice of state police, Davis contacted county officials using his police email account and identified himself as a trooper to obtain an involuntary commitment order. He was off duty at the time.

While he was requesting the warrant, police were sent to conduct a welfare check on the victim. They checked three separate locations but couldn’t find her.

According to the affidavit, Davis took the form, said “I’ll take care of it myself” and left the police station.

Assisted by a “civilian companion,” he then followed the woman to the Pennsylvania State Game Lands in Weiser State Forest and attempted to carry her to his car before she began fighting back.

Video released by the district attorney’s office shows the victim, who is covered in dirt and nearly half the soldier’s size, nearly freeing himself from his grasp.

As she tries to get up, Davis pulls her legs out from under her and forces her to the ground. She punches him in an attempt to fight him off, but Davis captures her in a “wrestling-like hold.”

She repeatedly tells the man that she cannot breathe, as stated in the affidavit.

When police arrived, the victim’s injuries were documented and she was taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital-Schuykill for evaluation.

Police then interviewed Davis.

He reiterated that the woman had made comments via text message “that she has no reason to live, that she is a worthless piece of shit, and that she is going to end it all,” according to the affidavit. He added that she would not answer his calls.

However, he did not elaborate on the “control methods” used by his ex-girlfriend, who suffered injuries to her forehead, torso, back, buttocks, forearms, knee and lower body.

The affidavit noted that she “really seemed to have no understanding as to why she was being restrained.”

Upon arrival at the hospital, MF was initially held for 72 hours. An official contacted the hospital to verify that the facility’s involuntary mental health commitment was being enforced and learned that it was.

The woman was held for another two days. She showed no suicidal thoughts during the nearly week she was held.

On August 26, the woman was released and interviewed by police, but she was shown a completely different side of the story.

In her interview, MF indicated the incident stemmed from a domestic dispute on Aug. 19, according to the affidavit. She described a four-month entanglement colored by “different ideological views and differences in roles within relationships.”

She stated that Davis threatened her repeatedly over the course of their relationship, saying, “I know you’re not crazy, I’ll paint you crazy” and “I know the law.”

She also cited recent examples of the power imbalance, including cutting off power to the RV where she lived and preventing access to her personal belongings.

As the relationship began to fall apart, MF made statements about a fresh start in a city and “felt a confrontation building” as Davis “needed to maintain power and control,” according to documents.

On August 28, officers were allowed to photograph her text conversations with Davis. As the couple argued, Davis “continued to make disparaging comments,” including comments about drug testing and how the woman was unemployable.

In the messages, MF also described being locked out of her trailer and lacking access to “hygiene, livelihood and living comfort,” the affidavit said.

After reading the messages, police alleged that Davis “failed to provide the full context of those messages” when he attempted to have the woman committed.

“In fact, the text messages were the culmination of a larger, domestic dispute between him and the victim,” the affidavit reads.

“Put into context, the lyrics revealed her frustration with Trooper Davis and his controlling behavior (and her desire to end the relationship), and not a genuine desire to harm herself.”

The indictment accuses Davis of “knowingly impeding the breathing or circulation of another person by applying pressure to the throat or neck.”

It says he restrained her “under circumstances that exposed the said other person to the risk of serious bodily harm,” violating Section 2902(a)(1) of the Pennsylvania Crimes Code, which refers to “unlawful restraint. ‘

Davis was charged with strangulation, unlawful restraint, false imprisonment, simple assault, recklessly endangering another person and official oppression.

He was remanded without bail after an arraignment on September 21.