Suspect in J.J. Clavo shooting wants case moved

The attorney for the teen accused in the shooting death of a popular Grant High football player will petition to move his client’s case to juvenile court.

A preliminary hearing was canceled Friday for Keymontae Lindsey, 16, who pleaded not guilty in July to murder charges in the death of Grant High football player Jaulon "J.J." Clavo.

On Friday he appeared in Sacramento Superior Court where he was granted a continuance in his case. His lawyer, Peter Harned, said vacating Friday’s hearing allows “us an opportunity to have him evaluated for a return to juvenile hall.”

Lindsey was charged as an adult and faces charges including murder, shooting into an occupied vehicle and a gang enhancement in the Nov. 13, 2015 incident.

The recent passage of Proposition 57 entitles Lindsey to an evaluation by a juvenile court judge to decide whether he is fit to be tried as an adult, Harned said.

“That is a decision that for the last 15 years has been up to the district attorney, solely,” said Harned. “It is now no longer up to the district attorney.”

Lindsey is accused of walking up to Clavo's vehicle at Silver Eagle Road and Mabel Street and shooting the 17-year-old in the neck. Another teen in the car, Malik Johnson, was shot in the arm.

The pair and two other teammates were returning to Grant High after getting food before a playoff game. The shooter fled. Clavo died of his injuries at UC Davis Medical Center.

A day after the shooting, police arrested Lindsey at a traffic stop on an weapons charge, unrelated to the murder. The 9-mm handgun in Lindsey's possession was found to be the gun used to kill Clavo, authorities said.

Prosecutors said previously that Lindsey was "affiliated with or committed the shooting in service to" the Strawberry Manor Bloods street gang. Police said Clavo did not know Lindsey.

The North Sacramento community held a vigil after the shooting and eventually raised a $40,000 reward for information leading to an arrest in the case.

This story was originally published December 9, 2016 at 10:32 AM.