Ex-officer found guilty in the 2020 shooting death of Andre Hill

This image from a video screenshot shows former Columbus police officer Adam Coy during his trial in Columbus, Ohio on Oct. 28, 2024. (WSYX/WTTE via AP)

Columbus, Ohio -

A former police officer was convicted of murder Monday in the shooting of Andre Hill, a Black man who was holding a cellphone and keys when he was killed.

Officer Adam Coy, who served nearly 20 years with the Columbus police force, shot Hill four times in a garage nearly four years ago. Coy, who is white, was fired after the shooting. He told jurors that he thought Hill was holding a silver revolver.

“I thought I was going to die,” he testified. It was only after he rolled over Hill’s body and saw the keys that he realized there was no gun, Coy said tearfully. “I knew at that point I made a mistake. I was horrified.”

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Coy, who was partially blocked from view by his grim-faced attorneys, did not visibly react to the verdict but muffled cries could be heard in the courtroom when it was announced. Prosecutors asked that the former officer be sentenced immediately. Franklin County Judge Stephen McIntosh instead set a sentencing date of Nov. 25.

Coy, who is undergoing cancer treatments for Hodgkin lymphoma, was devastated by the verdict, said defence attorney Mark Collins, who slightly shook his head “no” when the verdict was read and later promised to appeal.

Police body camera footage showed Hill coming out of the garage of a friend’s house holding up a cellphone in his left hand, his right hand not visible, seconds before he was fatally shot by Coy. Almost 10 minutes passed before officers at the scene began to aid Hill, who lay bleeding on the garage floor. He was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Weeks after the December 2020 shooting, the mayor forced out the police chief after a series of fatal police shootings of Black men and children. Columbus later reached a US$10 million settlement with Hill’s family, the largest in city history. The Columbus City Council also passed Andre’s Law, which requires police officers to render immediate medical attention to an injured suspect.

Prosecutors said Hill, 47, had followed the officer’s commands and was never a threat to Coy, who now faces at least 15 years in prison.

“We’re taught, 'Do what the cops tell you to do and you can survive that encounter,'” Franklin County assistant prosecutor Anthony Pierson said during closing arguments. “That’s not what happened here.”

Shawna Barnett, one of Hill’s sisters, said she hoped the verdict would a send message that violence from police won’t be tolerated.

“It’s been way too long, but I’m glad it's over,” she said. “It’s time to stop. It’s time to make everything fair.”

Brian Steel, president of the police union in Columbus, said he was shocked by the murder conviction and said it would cause ripple effects for officers in Ohio and beyond.

“Your split-second decision can now be led to murder,” he said. “It is absolutely insane.”

“Officers are willing to die for their community, they are willing to die for this job,” Steel said. “They do not want to go to prison for this job."

The officer’s attorneys argued that Hill’s lack of a weapon did not matter because Coy thought his life was in danger. “He wasn’t reckless, he was reasonable,” Collins said during the trial.

Coy had gone to the neighbourhood to investigate a complaint about someone inside a running vehicle when he first encountered Hill sitting in an SUV. Hill told Coy he was waiting on a friend to come outside.

The officer said he thought Hill seemed dismissive and then suspicious after Hill walked to a house and knocked on the door before entering the garage.

Coy said he lost sight of Hill and suspected he might be trying to break into the house. Coy used a flashlight to spot Hill in the garage and told him to come out, the officer testified.

When Hill walked toward him, Coy said he could not see the man’s right hand and then saw what he thought was a revolver. He said he yelled, “Gun! Gun!” and then fired at Hill.

Family and friends said Hill — a father and grandfather — was devoted to his family and was a skilled tradesman who dreamed of one day owning his own restaurant, after years of work as a chef and restaurant manager.

Coy had a lengthy history of complaints from residents, with more than three dozen filed against him since he joined the department in 2002, according to his personnel file. A dozen of the complaints were for use of force. All but a few were marked “unfounded” or “not sustained.”