Sacramento librarian fatally shot by man banned from library, police say

As 56-year-old Ronald Seay sits inside a Sacramento jail charged in the shooting death of a librarian, he's also facing charges for crimes at libraries in the Midwest.

Seay is accused of killing Amber Clark last week as she sat in her car in the parking lot of the North Natomas Library, where she was a supervisor, Sacramento police said.

While the motive behind the shooting is unclear, police said Seay and Clark had met before, during an incident at the library on Oct. 13. Officers responded to the scene after getting reports of a disturbance. Clark was the supervisor overseeing the situation. A no trespassing order was filed against Seay after the incident.

However, that wasn't the first time Seay has had run-ins with law enforcement officers at libraries, officials said.

Seay had a confrontation at a library in Ferguson, Missouri, in August. Librarian Scott Bonner took to social media Friday to explain what happened.

"(Seay) was ranting because his wallet had been stolen. He had (perhaps paranoiac-ly) decided to blame library staff, and was loudly (and aggressively) asking us again and again to check the lost and found," Bonner tweeted.

In another tweet, Bonner told what happened next: "I talked him down as I coaxed him to the door. I got him outside and on his way, and I was scared, and it was a long process."

The situation didn't end there. "Shortly thereafter, he called the library, and made threats, that if the wallet wasn't found, he'd come after me. Expected, as I was the last one to deal with him," he tweeted.

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Then in September, Seay was arrested in connection with trespassing at a library in Brentwood, Missouri, the city's police chief said. Employees called 911 after Seay refused to leave. He reportedly told Brentwood police, "I don't care. I'm coming back."

Court records show Seay failed to show up for court in October. A warrant was issued for his arrest.

It's not clear when Seay arrived in the Sacramento area, but, Sacramento police said he was living in the Natomas area for several months before Clark's shooting death on Dec. 11.

Seay was arrested in the Elverta area less than 12 hours after Clark's death. Police said he led officers on a vehicle chase before he was taken into custody.

Seay is expected to be back in court next week.

This story originally appeared on KCRA.