Nearly Five Years After Elk Grove Officer Tyler Lenehan’s Death, Suspect Still Awaits Trial
A substantial portion of the more recent litigation has involved the California Racial Justice Act
ELK GROVE, Calif. — More than four and a half years after an Elk Grove police officer was killed in a wrong-way collision on Highway 99, the man accused of causing his death remains in Sacramento County custody while his murder case continues without a trial.
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Jermaine Jeryan Walton remains incarcerated at the Rio Cosumnes Correctional Center, according to Sacramento County inmate records.
Sacramento Superior Court records show Walton's case remains active and includes a future proceeding scheduled for 9 a.m. Oct. 23 in Department 11C. The court docket describes the proceeding as a "Settlement Conference - RJA," referring to California's Racial Justice Act.
Walton is accused in the Jan. 21, 2022, death of Elk Grove Police Officer Tyler "Ty" Lenehan, the first Elk Grove officer killed in the line of duty.
A six-year department veteran, Lenehan was operating his department motorcycle to work while in uniform when authorities said Walton drove the wrong direction on Highway 99 and collided head-on with him. Lenehan was transported to a hospital, where he died.
Authorities said Walton showed signs of intoxication and was apprehended while walking away from the collision scene. Prosecutors subsequently charged him with murder and felony hit-and-run resulting in death.
Walton was held to answer following a preliminary hearing in September 2022. Since then, court records show numerous trial readiness conferences, settlement conferences, discovery motions and other proceedings, but no trial, conviction or sentencing is reflected in a review of the docket (see below).
A substantial portion of the more recent litigation has involved the California Racial Justice Act.
The law, codified primarily in Penal Code Section 745, prohibits the state from seeking or obtaining a criminal conviction or imposing a sentence based on a defendant's race, ethnicity or national origin. Among other provisions, defendants can seek evidence concerning possible racial disparities in charging, convictions or sentencing and raise claims of racial bias involving participants in the criminal justice process.
Court records show Walton's attorneys sought data under the Racial Justice Act beginning in 2023. In March 2024, the court granted at least one defense request for discovery concerning active cases while denying another request seeking discovery extending back 10 years from the date of the alleged offense.
The litigation continued through 2025 and 2026 with proceedings identified on the docket as motions for relevant data under the Racial Justice Act, discovery disputes and requests for a prima facie hearing, a proceeding addressing whether a sufficient initial showing has been made to advance a claim.
The case moved to settlement and status conferences this summer. A settlement conference was scheduled June 5, followed by a status conference July 2 and an RJA discovery-status proceeding July 31. A settlement/status conference was heard Sept. 4 in Department 11C.
The next scheduled proceeding, according to the docket, is the Oct. 23 RJA settlement conference.
Although the Racial Justice Act litigation has occupied a significant portion of the court proceedings in recent years, the public docket does not establish that those proceedings are responsible for the overall delay in bringing Walton's case to trial.
The case has also included numerous other continuances, settlement conferences, trial-readiness proceedings and time-count or waiver matters.
Walton has remained in custody while the case proceeds.
Jan. 21, 2027, will mark five years since Lenehan's death.
