Ray E. Tate has filed a motion to withdraw his guilty plea and vacate the sentence in his felony cases in Clinton County.
Tate had previously appeared in the Clinton County courthouse on October 16 for a final pretrial hearing on multiple charges related to his 2021 capture at a farmhouse near Carlyle. In an unexpected move, he waived his right to a jury trial and entered guilty pleas to two Class-X felony charges of aggravated kidnapping, one Class-X felony charge of home invasion, and one Class-1 felony charge of aggravated possession of stolen firearms. The court accepted his plea and sentenced him to 30 years each for the kidnapping and home invasion charges, along with 10 years for the firearms conviction, with the sentences to run concurrently.
In a handwritten motion, Tate claims his guilty plea was coerced through “force or threats” and argues he had inadequate legal representation. He has also filed identical motions in Wayne County to withdraw his plea and vacate his sentence.
No date has been set to hear Tate’s motion in Clinton County. He is currently serving a life sentence without parole for the December 29, 2021, killing of Wayne County Sheriff’s Deputy Sean Riley, as well as an additional 100 years for crimes related to his capture in Clinton County.
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