Dayton man accused of killing 2-month-old son found competent for trial

His son, Gabriel Clouse, died Feb. 5, 2020, at Dayton Children’s Hospital.

“An autopsy revealed the infant suffered from a skull fracture and brain hemorrhages. The defendant was alone with the infant when these injuries occurred,” The Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office said in a release.

A day before the Montogomery County Coroner ruled the 2-month’s old death a homicide, Gov. Mike DeWine ordered a review of the Montgomery County Child Services which found the agency didn’t do enough to assess whether children were at risk, and did not follow through with making sure children and families got needed services.

A Montgomery County Children Services spokesman previously said the agency opened an investigation involving Gabriel when the child was taken to the hospital. He would not say whether the agency had a prior case involving the family, citing privacy laws.

Credit: William Clouse / Montgomery County Jail

Credit: William Clouse / Montgomery County Jail

In a ruling issued last week, Montgomery County Common Pleas Judge Richard Skelton ruled William Clouse competent to stand trial.

“All parties stipulated to the contents of the psychiatric report as submitted by the Forensic Psychiatry Center for Western Ohio, and, upon review of the report and the evidence, the court finds that defendant is presently competent to stand trial,” a court document in the case says.

A day before Skelton filed his decision, Clouse’s defense team filed a motion to suppress evidence in the case.

“In the case at bar, law enforcement officers questioned the Defendant without properly advising him of his Miranda rights, if at all. Next, the defendant was arrested, clearly detained and interrogated. Again, the defendant was not properly advised of, nor did he waive, his constitutional rights prior to being interrogated by law enforcement. As such, any statements alleged to have been made by the defendant in this case must be suppressed,” the motion says.

A hearing date for the motion has been set for Aug. 23.