A Decatur judge granted a $500,000 bond Friday to a 29-year-old man accused of sodomizing his daughter when she was 7 years old, despite calling the evidence against him strong and finding the lead detective's testimony credible. Tre Austin Gray, who lives in the Moores Mill area of Madison County, was arrested on a first-degree sodomy charge on October 13 and had been held in the Morgan County jail without bond before Friday's hearing.
Detective Describes Assault at Decatur Apartment
The hearing, held under Alabama's Aniah's Law, centered on testimony from Decatur Police Detective Macey Knight, the prosecution's only witness, according to the Decatur Daily. Knight testified that Gray assaulted his daughter, now 11, at his apartment on Cedar Lake Road Southwest in Decatur when she was 7, and that the girl told her mother her stepmother had been watching her and her sister at the time. The detective's testimony indicated the assault caused the girl pain and bleeding, and that Gray threatened her, telling her she would never see her mother again if she told anyone.
Decatur police received the initial report of the alleged assault on September 14, after Hartselle police referred it to Decatur investigators because the alleged assault occurred within Decatur city limits. Investigators then obtained an arrest warrant for Gray. Griff Belser represented Gray at the hearing, while Courtney Schellack represented the state.
Judge Finds Evidence Strong, Still Sets Bond
In his written order, District Judge Kevin Kusta described the evidence against Gray as strong and found Knight's testimony credible, but opted to set a $500,000 bond rather than deny bail outright. That option exists because of Aniah's Law, the constitutional amendment Alabama voters approved as Amendment 1 in November 2022, which gives judges the authority to deny bail to defendants facing violent Class A felonies including first-degree sodomy, according to Ballotpedia. The law followed the 2019 abduction and murder of 19-year-old Aniah Blanchard by a suspect who was out on bail for violent charges at the time. Alabama voters expanded the law again in May 2026, adding offenses like solicitation and attempt to commit murder to the list eligible for bail denial, a measure backed by mayors of the state's ten largest cities and approved by more than 81 percent of voters.
Kusta ordered Gray to wear a GPS monitor and remain under the supervision of the Morgan County Community Corrections and Court Services Program while his case proceeds. That agency, established in 2004, oversees more than 1,300 defendants across pretrial release, electronic monitoring, drug court, and work release programs out of the Morgan County Courthouse in Decatur, per the Morgan County Commission. Its programs include pretrial release and electronic monitoring. As part of his release conditions, Gray was prohibited from having direct or indirect contact with the alleged victim and ordered to stay away from her home, school and other places she frequents without a legitimate reason.
Second Daughter's Case Under Investigation in Jefferson County
Knight's testimony also touched on a separate matter: Jefferson County authorities had a sexual abuse investigation underway involving Gray and the alleged victim's sister. Gray has four children — two daughters, ages 9 and 11, from his first marriage, and a daughter and son, ages 5 and 7, from his second marriage. The 11-year-old alleged victim is his oldest daughter. The status and outcome of the Jefferson County investigation was not detailed further in testimony and remains an open question in the case.
Gray also testified about a custody dispute over his youngest daughter, who is in the custody of his mother-in-law, that began in August 2025. He described his relationship with his mother-in-law as strained, saying she had repeatedly asked his wife about adopting their daughter, and said he believed she filed the complaint or sought the investigation and may be coaching the children. Gray said he had not seen his 11-year-old daughter since around August 2025 but had spoken with her by phone, and that he voluntarily gave up visitation rights to her about four years earlier. According to the hearing record, Gray has no prior criminal history and works for a NASA contractor at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville.
What a Conviction Would Mean Under Alabama Law
Alabama law defines first-degree sodomy involving a victim under 12 as a Class A felony punishable by 10 to 99 years or life in prison, according to FindLaw. State law also bars discretionary parole for Class A felony sex offenses involving children, meaning any prison sentence imposed upon conviction must be served in full, per RAINN, which notes state statutes also bar pardons for such offenses. A conviction would require mandatory sex-offender registration, often for life, according to JB Brown Criminal Trial Practice. Registered offenders must report their home address, employment and vehicle details to the county sheriff immediately. Registered offenders in Alabama face geographic restrictions on living near schools and childcare facilities, working within 2,000 feet of them, and being within 500 feet of certain child-focused locations.
Nationally, roughly one in four girls and one in 13 boys experience child sexual abuse before adulthood, according to the National Children's Alliance, which also reported that Children's Advocacy Centers across the country provided services to 365,140 children facing abuse allegations in 2025.
