Ronnie Ortiz-Magro’s Ups and Downs Through the Years

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Ronnie Ortiz-Magro's Ups and Downs Through the Years

Since his 2009 debut on Jersey Shore, Ronnie Ortiz-Magro has earned a reputation as the most drama-prone roommate — a difficult feat among a cast infamous for its beachside antics. As part of the "RSVP" crew with Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino, Vinny Guadagnino and Paul "DJ Pauly D" DelVecchio, the Bronx native started his Shore career as a partier, inventing the drink "Ron-Ron Juice" and dancing all night at Karma and Bamboo. He settled down somewhat after he began dating fellow cast member Sammi "Sweetheart" Giancola, but their off-and-on relationship quickly became one of the show's biggest sources of drama. In season 3, things reached a breaking point when Ortiz-Magro destroyed Giancola's belongings during a blow-out fight and tried to throw a bed outside while she was still on it. By the time the show ended in December 2012, the pair had reconciled after many on-camera splits and were moving in together. Less than two years later, the couple broke up for good. "Me and Sammi aren't together anymore," the reality star told Us Weekly in August 2014. "We just grew our separate ways. She's still a great person. I love her as a person and I care about her but we went our separate ways. That's it." Ortiz-Magro returned to the spotlight in summer 2017 as a cast member on season 2 of Famously Single, where he met Malika Haqq, but the pair dated for just two months and split before the show even premiered. Shortly before Jersey Shore: Family Vacation began airing in April 2018, Ortiz-Magro met Jen Harley, who he dated off and on through October 2019. The pair have one daughter, Ariana, also born in April 2018. As with his previous girlfriends, the MTV personality had a tumultuous relationship with Harley. The pair had several fights on the show related to Ortiz-Magro's alleged infidelities, as well as off-camera conflicts that involved the authorities. [sendtonews type="float" key="4faho58kUw-2839895-14453"] In January 2019, he entered a one-month treatment program for depression and alcohol addiction. "I decided to go to treatment because I wanted to be a better person, a better father for my daughter," he told Us in February of that year. "Eventually, all the bad decisions I was making were going to lead me to places that I didn’t want to be. I wanted to be led to the place that I am now — that’s happy, healthy and the best role model for my daughter." Things seemed to be going smoothly for Ortiz-Magro for a few months, but in October 2019, he was arrested for domestic violence after an altercation with Harley where their child was present. After pleading not guilty to all charges the following month, he was put on probation for 36 months. In 2020, the reality star seemed to get back on the right track, reuniting with Ariana and meeting new girlfriend Saffire Matos. However, in April 2021, he was arrested again for domestic violence and later released on bond. One month later, Ortiz-Magro revealed in an Instagram Story that he would be stepping away from Jersey Shore in order to "seek medical treatment for mental health issues that I've ignored for too long." Keep scrolling to read more about Ortiz-Magro's ups and down through the years: [podcast_block]

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December 2009

Jersey Shore was an almost-instant phenomenon after its premiere, turning all eight roommates into celebrities and spawning catchphrases like, "Cabs are here" and "GTL!" By the time the show ended in 2012, the group had become so famous that it was hard to keep their many fans out of frame during filming at clubs and restaurants.

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August 2014

After breaking the cardinal rule, "Never fall in love at the Jersey Shore," Giancola and Ortiz-Magro called it quits for good after five years of dating off and on. Three years later, Giancola was the only cast member who decided not to return for Family Vacation. "Everyone was invited to come on the show but Sammi was the only one who didn’t want to. A big reason for that was because she didn’t want to be around Ronnie,” a source told Us in November 2017. “She has been enjoying her life off of TV and didn’t want to change that.”

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February 2017

After meeting on Famously Single, Ortiz-Magro and Haqq dated for two months before calling it quits in February 2017. The Dash Dolls alum later claimed that the pair broke up because his communication style was too "verbally" and "physically aggressive." For his part, Ortiz-Magro claimed that he and Haqq had a civil relationship following the split. “When I see Malika, we are just fine,” he told Us in November 2017. “We were there for 18 days and things just get heated and you tend to fall into these things, but we are cool. We both have moved on and are happy.”

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April 2018

Harley and Ortiz-Magro welcomed Ariana on April 3 after announcing the previous December that they were expecting. Just a few weeks later, they split after exchanging insults via social media and appearing to get in a physical fight on Instagram Live. They then reunited again in May. Before their daughter arrived, the Jersey Shore star spoke openly about feeling like he had finally found The One. “[Jen] is the first person I finally really fell in love with," he told Us in November 2017. "I want to settle down and have a family; she is that person for me."

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June 2018

About a year into their relationship, Harley and Ortiz-Magro were involved in a public altercation in Las Vegas while filming season 2 of Family Vacation. Police were called to the scene, but the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department later confirmed to Us that "officers determined a battery did not take place." 

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January 2019

Following his one-month stay in rehab for depression and alcohol abuse, the Jersey Shore star told Us that he hit "rock bottom" before deciding to enter a treatment facility. “I couldn’t live hurting myself, basically having my daughter grow up and it’s eventually going to hurt her,” he said in February 2019. “I was in a place of depression, and with depression, I turned to alcohol … I was sitting there blaming everything else; I was like the victim, and I’m not a victim to life. I’m blessed and I’m lucky enough that I have different options, different outlets.”

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October 2019

After getting into another altercation with Harley that ended their relationship for good, Ortiz-Magro was charged with seven misdemeanors, including domestic violence, child endangerment, brandishing a weapon, criminal threats, false imprisonment and two counts of resisting arrest. He pleaded not guilty to all charges in November 2019 and was placed on probation for 36 months. As part of a plea deal, he was also ordered to complete 30 days of community labor in Nevada, pay $20,000 to a women’s shelter and finish a 52-week domestic violence class.

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February 2020

The reality star met Saffire Matos in February 2020 and later told Us that they talked for "four or five" months before beginning a relationship. "I would definitely say I’m in the happiest place I’ve been in a long time,” he said in November 2020. “You know, I feel like in the past I’ve always said, ‘I’m happy and I’m in a good place.’ I feel like I finally really have found my happiness.”

His castmates were also happy that he seemed to be getting himself together again. “Ronnie’s doing good,” Sorrentino told Us in February 2020. “Every now and again, he’ll text and he’ll say, ‘Everything’s good.’ And that’s all we can ask for.” Guadagnino added, "When there’s no news, it’s good news."

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May 2020

Because of an emergency order of protection obtained by Harley following the October 2019 arrest, Ortiz-Magro was barred from seeing Ariana until May 2020. He documented their reunion on Instagram, writing, "I don’t think I’m moving anytime soon. Hold my calls."

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April 2021

Us confirmed on April 22 that the Celebrity Fear Factor alum had been arrested again in Los Angeles for domestic violence and later released on $100,000 bond. Harley, who was not involved, claimed that it had been Ortiz-Magro's turn to watch Ariana. After picking her up in L.A., Harley shared a photo with her daughter via Instagram, writing, "I'll hold her as long as she needs it."

If you or someone you know are experiencing domestic violence, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 for confidential support.

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April 2021

Following the arrest, Harley's boyfriend, Joe, posted multiple messages about Ortiz-Magro via his Instagram Story, including one that linked to a petition to have him fired from Jersey Shore: Family Vacation. “His victims shouldn’t have to see his face plastered to your television screens any longer,” Joe wrote.

In a separate Story, he wrote, “We are done with the harassment and death threats. He has done this to everyone else [and] sadly for him, he ran into someone that will fight for the woman he loves no matter what road it takes me down.”

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April 2021

Following Ortiz-Magro's release from jail on $100,000 bond, a source told Us that his ex was nervous about the time he spent with their daughter.

“Jen has been concerned about his behavior in front of Ariana and it's been an issue she's been worried about,” an insider exclusively revealed in April 2021 after the reality star's arrest. “She knows he always has this pattern and that he does not change."

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April 2021

Ortiz-Magro and his girlfriend Saffire Matos both broke their silence while the investigation into the New York native's arrest was still ongoing.

"Ronnie and I are fine," Matos wrote in an Instagram Story at the time. "There is a lot of misleading information floating around out there. With anybody who reached out with concern I appreciate it with all my heart, but everything that's being portrayed out there are not facts. I don't think it's fair that people are using false accusations to gain attention."

The MTV star, for his part, said he was "grateful" for his "real friends" amid his ups and downs. He added, "You learn who really cares about you when your [sic] down and out and than [sic] you see who doesn't! But I guess they call it the weeding process. Thank you to my real friends who haven't left my side and haven't betrayed me."

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May 2021

Ortiz-Magro and Matos both shared identical photos of them happy together once they were reunited after the April 2021 incident.

"A soulmate is someone who challenges you to be better, someone who can't stand seeing you sad, someone who stays faithful, loyal and committed to you, someone who helps take care of you when you're sick, someone who stands by your side through the good days and the bad days, and someone who wants to grow old and grey with you," the couple shared via their respective Instagram Stories in May 2021.

Later that month, Ortiz-Magro revealed that he would be stepping away from Jersey Shore in order to "seek medical treatment for mental health issues that I've ignored for too long."

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June 2021

Ortiz-Magro proposed to Matos on the beach in Los Angeles seven months after they went public with their relationship. “I love you 💕 Thank you for sticking by my side through thick and thin! Til death do us part! #SheSaidYes,” he wrote via Instagram at the time.

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July 2021

The TV personality did not appear in court for his probation hearing on July 23, following his April 2021 arrest. “I find that offensive that everyone has to be here except the defendant,” prosecutor Heidi Matz said in court. However, Ortiz-Magro’s attorney, Leonard Levine, was in attendance and said that his client has agreed to admit to the probation violation. 

During the hearing, Matz said the L.A. City Attorney’s Office planned to ask the defendant to serve 30 days in jail for the probation violation, but according to California law, Ortiz-Magro could serve that sentence in a program rather than in jail. The reality star’s attorney pointed out that he has already participated in a 30-day inpatient program, which he hopes will count as time served for the violation. Levine noted that Ortiz-Magro is still in the program but is doing an outpatient meeting three times a week.

The judge ordered Ortiz-Magro to physically appear in court on August 11 when they will determine whether his 30-day in-patient program will count for his violation and therefore not be required to do any jail time. “He’s not going to be doing any jail time,” Levine exclusively told Us after the hearing, noting his client is “doing very well.”

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August 2021

The reality star told TMZ he was four months sober and "living a good life" after taking time away from the Jersey Shore spotlight. "I stepped away to deal with my mental health, be a father to my child, be a fiancé to my woman," he said. "I'll be back and, you know, all the fans love me and I love them too so I'm gonna give them what they want and I'll see them soon. ... [It's] definitely not over."

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September 2021

Ortiz-Magro was ordered to take 26 parenting classes as his probation was revoked. Although his April incident violated his probation, the Jersey Laundry creator avoided jail time by showing proof that he voluntarily completed an in-patient program for 30 days, which the judge allowed as time served.

Credit: Courtesy of Saffire Matos/Instagram

October 2021

“Thank you everyone for coming to our special day❤️🌹,” Mattos captioned a series of photo via Instagram with her fiancé at their engagement party. The couple got cozy in front of a red, gold and white balloon wall while toasting to their future with friends and family.

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August 2022

After taking a lengthy break from Jersey Shore: Family Vacation, Ortiz-Magro returned to the series and revealed that he's been sober for one year. “It’s been a long year,” he told Sorrentino during a scene that was filmed earlier in 2022. “It’s been a lot of just doing the right thing, being a full-time dad, and being sober. I’m living the best life I can, one day at a time.”

In a confessional interview, he noted that he'd missed his castmates while he was away from the show. “I’ve been through some s–t,” he said. “I f–ked up. I understand and that’s part of recovery, as well. What matters is I got through it and I’m going to continue to get through it.”

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January 2023

While Ortiz-Magro hasn’t stayed in touch with all of his Jersey Shore castmates, they exclusively told Us that they “wish the best for him” as he continues to work on himself.

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March 2023

Ronnie returned to Jersey Shore during the March 23 episode of Family Vacation, nearly three years after his exit from the reboot (and shortly after ex Sammi announced her return).

“I feel like I needed a change of scenery and just a change of pace in my life. I’ve decided to move from Los Angeles to Miami and open up a new business. It’s a sneaker store called SneakerClinic,” he said during a confessional interview, noting he now has full custody of his daughter. “It’s a lot of hard work, but she keeps me balanced. She calms my world. I didn’t have the perfect situation with her mother, but she’s turned out perfect. She’s so sweet [and] polite. It’s like, ‘Are you mine?'”