Jockey may have been stoned during rampage, attorneys say

So, why did a renowned Bensalem jockey - "117 pounds of sweetness" - allegedly go on a naked rampage in which he masturbated outside one neighbor's apartment and attacked others inside theirs?

Two months later, the best explanation so far is marijuana - really strong marijuana or weed that was laced.

Both a Bucks County prosecutor and the jockey's attorney offered that theory Wednesday morning for Angel Suarez Medero's behavior that December night, which stopped only after a resident at the Bensalem apartment complex shot him twice and police subdued him.

The attorneys spoke to reporters after Medero, 21, waived his right to a preliminary hearing of the evidence against him, a step that sends the case forward to Common Pleas Court in Doylestown.

The jockey, dressed in jeans and pink button-down shirt, was in court but declined to comment. Until toxicology results of his blood come back from the lab, exactly what happened that night will remain unknown, the attorneys said.

Medero said he doesn't remember the incident. After being shot, he was placed into an induced coma. He didn't leave the hospital until weeks later on $25,000 bail.

Bucks County Prosecutor Dan Sweeney said Medero was smoking marijuana that night, but police only recovered the typical commercial kind. But he suspects Medero was smoking a more "virulent" strain that could have sparked the rampage.

"But there's still no reason for why it happened," Sweeney said. "We're waiting to confirm through toxicology."

Bill Goldman, Medero's attorney, said, "We're all at a loss to understand what happened. But perhaps the message to the community is, 'Don't smoke marijuana. You never know what it could be laced with.' "

Goldman called Medero "117 pounds of sweetness," noting to reporters that he still has braces and pimples, and that his mother came with him to court.

The attorney apologized to Medero's neighbors for what happened. Medero has a colostomy bag and faces more surgeries related to his injuries from the two gunshot wounds.

On the night of the incident, police said, a neighbor first saw Medero masturbating on her deck before he broke through her sliding glass door. She fled to another apartment, and Medero then jumped out of her second-floor window, police said.

Medero then allegedly broke into another apartment and assaulted two people inside before one of them shot him twice. The struggle with Medero continued until officers arrived and subdued him, police said.

His career as a jockey remains in doubt, his attorney said.

Medero, known professionally as Angel Suarez, grew up in Puerto Rico and experienced a quick rise in the sport of horse racing. In 2012, the year after he graduated from riding school in Puerto Rico and moved to Pennsylvania, he won 142 races and brought in more than $3 million in winnings.

Those who knew him in the business considered it only a matter of time before Medero raced in the Kentucky Derby or another well-known stakes race, said his former agent.

Medero faces charges that include felony burglary, assault, and indecent exposure. The unidentified neighbor who shot him was not charged.