A Fleming Island man is behind bars more than seven years after a toddler suffered a catastrophic head injury inside a Clay County home. Authorities say the arrest comes after a medical examiner formally ruled the child’s death a homicide. The suspect, 39-year-old Wren Garrett, was the only adult reported to be at the home when the injury happened in October 2018.
The Clay County Sheriff’s Office arrested Garrett on Monday and booked him into the county jail on a second-degree murder charge. He is being held without bond, according to law enforcement. The arrest and case details were first reported by First Coast News.
Case timeline and injuries
Clay County deputies say the girl, then 2 years old, suffered a critical head injury on Oct. 13, 2018, at a home on Little River Drive in Fleming Island after being left in Garrett’s care. She was rushed to Wolfson Children's Hospital in Jacksonville, where surgeons removed about one-quarter of her skull because of severe swelling, according to the sheriff’s office.
Her body was later transferred to a medical examiner out of state as investigators continued to review the circumstances of her death in the years that followed.
Medical examiner ruled death a homicide
The medical examiner ultimately determined the girl’s death was a homicide, listing the immediate cause as bilateral pneumonia due to sequelae of blunt-force injuries to the head. That finding was made public on Aug. 31, 2025. Those conclusions and the timeline that led to Garrett’s March 2026 arrest were first detailed by First Coast News.
Legal next steps
Garrett is currently held without bond in the Clay County jail on a second-degree murder charge, the sheriff’s office says. Officials have not yet publicly released a court date or outlined the specific evidence presented to prosecutors.
The case now moves through the local prosecutor’s office, which will decide whether to proceed to arraignment and, potentially, trial.
Investigators have not immediately disclosed what, if any, new information helped push the case forward after so many years. The Clay County Sheriff’s Office is asking anyone with tips related to the incident to contact authorities as the probe continues.
