MADERA - A Chowchilla man has been booked into the Madera County Department of Corrections for the killing of his estranged wife. On Tuesday around 2:30 PM Madera Police Officers responded to a call of shots fired at the Camarena Health Clinic in the 500 block of East Almond Avenue.
When police arrived at the scene they discovered a female victim who suffered multiple gunshot wounds. The victim was transported to the hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries. According to Madera Police, the suspect followed the victim to the clinic where she was shot multiple times while trying to protect her children.
The victim has been identified as 32-year-old Calley Jean Garay of Chowchilla. Madera Police worked on several leads but from the start believed the victim was targeted by the suspect. Witnesses at the scene told police the suspect walked up to the woman’s vehicle while she and her children were in the vehicle and fired his weapon at point blank range.
During the course of the investigation, Julio Garay (49) was identified as the suspect. He is the estranged husband of the victim, and has a lengthy criminal history related to domestic violence arrests. The suspect was recently bailed out of jail on a domestic violence charge against the same victim. That incident occurred in the city of Chowchilla.
Garay was arrested in Marina California Wednesday. He was transported back to Madera where he was booked for homicide.
An emotional Madera Police Chief Dino Lawson told local media, "This is despicable, I can't think of anything more horrific than to do something like this - a cold-blooded act in front of the mother's children. The mother, being a mother, sacrificed her own life, and laid across the bodies of her children to save them."
All three children are below six years of age and mental health professionals are working with them.
Anyone with information regarding this case is asked to call 559-675-4220.
If you are the victim of domestic abuse, or you know someone who is, there is help available 24/7. In Fresno and Madera Counties, call the Marjaree Mason Center at (559) 233-4357. In all other locations, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at (800) 799-7233.
