OXFORD, Miss. — An attorney for Dominique Clayton’s family has sent the City of Oxford a notice of claim for $5 million in her death, allegedly at the hands of an Oxford police officer with whom she’d been romantically involved.
Attorney Carlos Moore revealed Monday that Clayton believed she might have been pregnant at the time of her murder May 19, which Moore said she told her sister.
“Her sister said she told Matthew Kinne around the same time,” Moore said.
Matthew Kinne has since been fired from the Oxford Police Department and awaits trial for Clayton’s murder.
Moore said his investigation revealed Clayton and Kinne had been seeing each other for about two years, with Kinne making early morning trips to her house while on duty four days a week.
“You would think if a man goes missing for two or three hours, the supervisors would notice at some point,” said Moore, who believes other officers were aware of Kinne’s involvement with Clayton.
In the days following her murder, two Oxford police officers abruptly resigned, and Oxford Mayor Robyn Tannehill asked the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office to investigate the Oxford Police Department.
On Monday, Moore sent the city the $5 million claim, which Tannehill confirmed the city had received but declined further comment.
“Oxford’s actions and their diligence, or lack thereof, contributed to Mr. Kinne being hired, contributed to him having a gun, contributed to him having a police cruiser that were all used toward the killing of this lady,” Moore said.
Moore said his investigation also indicated that Kinne planned Clayton’s murder. He said that May 14 Kinne showed up to Clayton’s house unannounced and that she told her sister she was worried he might harm her.
On May 16, Moore said Kinne convinced Clayton to get rid of her dogs, paving the way for an armed intrusion.
“If the dogs had have been there, you can rest assured she would have not been shot in the back of the head, that they would have awakened her and she would have known the man was there,” Moore said.
He said the city has 90 days to settle before he files a lawsuit.
