Origin
Judge Rico is a clone of the famed Judge Dredd
Rico was first seen during the “Dredd Angel” story arc as one of the babies of high genetic stock that Mega-City One had decided to send Texas City as a goodwill gesture.
Unfortunately the hover-freighter transporting Rico was shot down, and its cargo held to ransom.
Dredd, and a recently lobotomized Mean Machine (who’s knowledge of the area was required) were sent to recover the babies from a group of mutants who were ransoming them.
Dredd and Mean fought their way through the mutants, and managed to rescue the babies with no time to spare, no sooner had they won did Mean start to recover from his brain surgery, turning on Dredd.
Dredd managed to incapacitate Mean, and brought the babies to Texas City.
26 Years later Rico is returned to Mega-City One to help replenish low stocks caused by the disaster known as Necropolis, when many of the Judges of Mega-City One were killed by the Dark Judges.
Creation
Judge Rico was created by John Wagner. Appearing in the Judge Dredd series of comic books the character was first introduced in 1984, in 2000AD issue 377.
Major Story Arcs
Blood Cadets
The as yet unnamed clone makes his first ‘grown-up’ appearance here as a cadet taking his Judge test.
He and Dredd ride around dispensing the law whilst talking, the new clone expresses concern about Dredd’s clone brothers, Rico Dredd, and Judge Kraken, both of whom went spectacularly bad.
The Clone is worried that there may possibly be something in their genes which make them susceptible to corruption, violence, and immorality.
Dredd tells him the story of himself and Rico growing up, and manages to set the clones mind at ease, the two of them carry on with a case and the clone proves himself worthy of being a Judge.
After succeeding, the Clone decides to name himself Rico Dredd, after Dredd’s clone brother.