Ryan Grantham, the "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" actor who was convicted last week of killing his own mother, is scared he'll become a victim of abuse in prison because on his slight stature.
His lawyer, Chris Johnson, is now arguing that Ryan shouldn't be housed in a maximum security prison, telling TMZ the actor could be "physically, psychologically and sexually intimidated" by hardened criminals.
Although Ryan is 24, he has a slim stature, weighing about 100 lbs and standing 5'2". The lawyer feels that age, size and mental state should all be considered for prison housing. He's currently pushing for Ryan to end up in a medium security prison, and the judge in Ryan's case also called for same housing. However, TMZ points out that that decision is actually up to corrections officials, not judges or attorneys.
Six months ago, Ryan pleaded guilty to a second-degree murder for the 2020 death of his mom, Barbara Waite. Prosecutors alleged that Ryan shot his mother in the back of the head as she played piano at her home.
"I shot her in the back of the head. In the moments after, she would have known it was me," he said into his GoPro camera after the killing.
The situation could have been worse, too. Prosecutors claim that Ryan had aspirations of assassinating Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as well. In fact, one day after his mother's death, Ryan loaded his car with guns, ammunition, Molotov cocktails, and directions to the Prime Minister's home. He even wrote about his plans for Trudeau in his dairy.
CBC.ca reported that Ryan thought about carrying out a mass shooting while driving to Trudeau's home. However, he aborted his plans and turned himself into Vancouver police.
Ryan — who played Jeffery Augustine in "Riverdale" and Rodney James in "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" — will not be eligible for parole for 14 years.