A Solano County Superior Court judge on Monday dismissed the felony case against 27-year-old Rio Vista man charged with injuring and killing is 2-month-old son in 2021, but the District Attorney’s Office indicated it plans to re-file it.
Court records indicate that Tre Kenneth Clay was to face a jury trial on Tuesday in Department 23, and Deputy District Attorney Elaine Kuo made a motion to continue.
But Clay’s defense attorney, Jeannette Garcia, a recently retired Deputy Public Defender now in private practice, objected.
Judge John B. Ellis did “not find good cause,” court records indicated, and he denied Kuo’s motion. He then vacated the jury trial, ordering Clay released, pending any holds, after he spent more than four years in Solano County Jail.
Clay was charged with assault on a child with great bodily injury resulting in death, and he entered a not-guilty plea to a felony charge, court records show. A murder charge against him had been dropped.
Clay was taken into custody by Solano County Sheriff investigators without incident on Jan. 23, 2021, at his Fourth Street apartment. The Solano County District Attorney’s Office filed its complaint on Jan. 26, and he faced jail arraignment three days later.
He was suspected of severely injuring the infant, who later died at an East Bay hospital. Clay was booked into Solano County Jail on a Ramey warrant, an arrest order issued by a judge before the prosecutor has filed formal charges.
According to a press release issued at the time by the Rio Vista Police Department, officers received a call during the evening of Jan. 18 about an infant with “suspicious injuries” who had been taken to Kaiser Permanente Antioch Medical Center.
Rio Vista officers began an investigation and immediately requested the help of Solano County Sheriff’s detectives.
Shortly after arriving at Kaiser Antioch, the infant was taken by ambulance to UCSF Oakland Children’s Hospital. Sheriff’s detectives responded to both hospitals and were told the infant had died from his injuries.
The detectives continued their interviews and evidence collection at both hospitals. A search warrant was obtained for the Fourth Street apartment, where investigators believe the infant suffered life-ending injuries. The detectives and crime scene investigators processed the scene and collected evidence, according to the press statement.
During the following days, more interviews were conducted, camera footage reviewed, evidence processed, an autopsy performed and behavioral experts consulted, which led to the arrest warrant for Clay, according to police.
It was unclear Tuesday, when the DA’s Office would re-file the case.