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Note this article has been updated to include the full arrest warrant for Melissa Ramirez and a comment from a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson. This article was updated a second time on July 31, 2026, to reflect an arrest warrant without redaction.
Melissa Ramirez, 27, of Stamford, made her first court appearance Monday at Danbury Superior Court on charges stemming from the July 13 crash that killed off-duty Bridgeport Police Officer Cooper “Coop” Whiteside and his girlfriend Brittany Islami, a mother of three young children (ages 12, 10, and 7).
According to the arrest warrant, Ramirez’s blood alcohol content was .14 — nearly twice the legal limit — and she tested positive for cannabis when her Jeep crossed into oncoming traffic and struck Whiteside’s motorcycle head-on on Sugar Hollow Road around 2:45 a.m. Police recovered an empty Corona bottle, an empty Corona can, and a THC vape cartridge.
Investigators determined that Ramirez was traveling 63 mph seconds before impact and 56 mph at the moment of collision in a 45 mph zone. Whiteside and Islami were pronounced dead at the scene.
"It appeared that the can of Corona beer had spilled during the crash, as there was fresh beer spilled all over the rear passenger area of the Jeep," per the warrant, as reported by News 12 Connecticut.
Ramirez faces two counts of second-degree manslaughter with a motor vehicle, operating under the influence, traveling unreasonably fast, and failure to drive in the proper lane. She was arrested July 24 and initially held on $500,000 bond.
At arraignment, Danbury State’s Attorney Stacey Haupt Miranda asked the court to keep the bond as set, noting: “I will indicate for the record that there is a detainer on her from immigration. It is unclear to me exactly for what other than statements.” Miranda also reported that Ramirez’s driver’s license is suspended indefinitely.
Defense attorney Daniel Thibideau said he had only just learned of the detainer and did not know its specifics. He told the court Ramirez was born in Mexico but has lived her entire life in Connecticut, is the mother of two children (ages 13 and 5), has significant local family ties, and has no prior criminal record. Thibideau asked the judge to adopt the bail commissioner’s recommendation of $250,000, arguing her family connections mitigated any flight risk.
Judge Sean McGuinness set bond at $300,000, with the condition that it cannot be posted until a GPS ankle bracelet is installed and activated. Additional conditions require her to surrender all passports and prohibit driving without a valid license and insurance.
“Melissa Esperanza Ramirez-Romero is a criminal illegal alien with charges for Vehicular Manslaughter and DUI. On July 26, 2026, ICE lodged a detainer against her,” per a Department of Homeland Security Spokesperson.
Ramirez is due back in court August 31.
The families of the victims continue to grieve while the case moves forward, and have established a GoFundMe set up for Islami's children.
Melissa Ramirez Arrest Warrant
MELISSA RAMIREZ documents per CT MIRROR
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