Ex-cop found guilty of shooting black man with cell phone and keys

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

Officer Adam Coy, who served on the Columbus Police Department for nearly two decades, shot Hill four times in a garage nearly four years ago. Coy, who is white, was fired after the shooting. He told jurors he believed Hill was holding a silver revolver that turned out to be keys.

“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 through tears. “I knew at that moment that I had made a mistake. I was shocked.”

Coy, partially hidden from view by his grim-faced lawyers, made no visible reaction to the verdict, but muffled shouts could be heard in the courtroom as it was announced. Prosecutors asked for the former officer’s immediate conviction. Franklin County Judge Stephen McIntosh instead set a sentencing date of Nov. 25.

Coy, who is undergoing cancer treatments for Hodgkin’s lymphoma, was devastated, said defense attorney Mark Collins, who shook his head slightly as the verdict was read and later vowed to appeal.

Police body camera footage showed Hill emerging from the garage of a friend’s home with a cellphone in his left hand, his right hand not visible, seconds before he was fatally shot by Coy. Nearly ten minutes passed before officers at the scene began helping Hill, who lay bleeding on the garage floor. He was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Weeks after the December 2020 shooting, the mayor forced the police chief to resign following a series of fatal police shootings of Black men and children. Columbus later reached a $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 provide immediate medical attention to an injured suspect.

Prosecutors said Hill, 47, followed the officer’s orders and never posed a threat to Coy, who now faces at least 15 years in prison. The jury also found him guilty of reckless homicide and assault.

“We were taught, ‘Do what the police tell you to do and you can survive that encounter,’” Assistant Franklin County Prosecutor Anthony Pierson said during closing arguments. “That didn’t happen here.”

Shawna Barnett, one of Hill’s sisters, hoped the jury’s decision would send a message that police violence will not be tolerated.

“It took 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 Columbus police union, said he was shocked by the murder conviction and said it would have implications for officers in Ohio and beyond.

“Your split-second decision now could lead to murder,” he said. “It’s absolutely insane.”

“Officers are willing to die for their community, they are willing to die for this job,” Steel said. “They don’t want to go to jail for this job.”

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

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who has represented Hill’s family, said the verdict shows no one is above the law and sent a message that “responsibility in law enforcement is not optional.”

“Andre was an unarmed, innocent man, and his life was taken in disregard of the duty to protect and serve,” Crump said in a statement.

Coy had gone to the neighborhood to investigate a complaint about someone in a moving vehicle when he first encountered Hill while sitting in an SUV. Hill told Coy he was waiting for a friend to come out.

The officer said he thought Hill seemed dismissive and suspicious after Hill walked up 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 outside, the officer testified.

When Hill walked toward him, Coy said he couldn’t see the man’s right hand and then saw what he thought was a revolver. He said he shouted, “Gun! Gun!” and then shot Hill.

Family and friends said Hill – a father and grandfather – was devoted to his family and was a skilled professional who dreamed of one day owning his own restaurant after working for years as a chef and restaurant manager.

Coy had a long history of complaints from residents, with more than three dozen complaints against him since he joined the department in 2002, his personnel file shows. About ten of the complaints concerned the use of violence. All but a few were classified as ‘unfounded’ or ‘unsupported’.

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