Family of Woman Murdered by Cop File Lawsuit Against Oxford

The family of a woman who was murdered by a former Oxford police officer is suing the city of Oxford, the police department and the man who killed her.

Matthew Kinne pleaded guilty to capital murder and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole last week in connection to the May 19, 2019, murder of Dominique Clayton.

Clayton’s family and their attorneys Carlos Moore and Ryan Bryant of the Cochran Law Firm announced the lawsuit Thursday afternoon in front of the Lafayette County Courthouse; however, the lawsuit was filed in the U.S. Federal Court in Oxford.

The lawsuit alleges that the city of Oxford, OPD and Kinne violated Clayton’s 4th and 14th Amendment rights. They alleged that Kinne was performing a welfare check on Clayton on the night he shot her after the two got into an argument. He arrived at her Brittany Estates home dressed in his uniform and driving a police patrol car.

However, the “welfare check” quickly turned into a homicide.

The two were in a romantic relationship at the time of Clayton’s murder despite Kinne being married at the time.

Moore also said the city should have been aware Kinne was “forced to resign” from the Olive Branch Police Department after his first wife died. Her death was ruled a suicide but Moore suggested Kinne had something to do with her death.

Moore said any money collected as a result of the civil suit would go into a trust fund for Clayton’s four children.

The city of Oxford has previously stated they cannot comment on pending litigation.

The city of Oxford, OPD and Kinne, who will be serving his life sentence at the Mississippi State Penitary in Parchman, have 30 days to respond to the complaint filed Thursday.