Former Ohio cop found guilty of murder in fatal 2020 shooting of an unarmed Black man

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Former police officer Adam Coy was found guilty of murder on Monday by a jury in the 2020 fatal shooting of Andre Hill, a 47-year-old unarmed Black man who was shot four times after the defendant ordered him to emerge from a darkened garage while holding a cellphone and a large set of keys.

The jury in the high-profile Franklin County Court of Common Pleas case announced its verdict after deliberating for about two-and-a-half days.

Besides murder, the jury also found Coy guilty of felonious assault and reckless homicide.

"This verdict delivers a measure of justice for Andre Hill's family, who have waited nearly four years to see criminal accountability for his tragic and unnecessary death," national civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump, who represents Hill's family, said in a statement. "Andre was an unarmed, innocent man, and his life was taken with disregard for the duty to protect and serve. Today's verdict underscores that no one is above the law, including those sworn to uphold it."

Crump added, "We hope these verdicts bring some healing to the Hill family and send a powerful message: accountability in law enforcement is not optional."

Coy asserted during the trial that he feared for his life when he mistakenly believed Hill was leveling a silver revolver at him as he stepped out of the garage on Dec. 22, 2020. But the silver revolver Coy testified that he believed Hill was holding in his right hand turned out to be a set of silver keys.

"I thought I was going to die," an emotional Coy, a former member of the Columbus Division of Police, testified last week.

Coy faces a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 25.

After the verdict was announced just after noon local time, Judge Stephen L. McIntosh revoked Coy's $1 million bond and Coy was immediately taken into custody by court officers who led him out of the courtroom.

Coy was fired from the Columbus Police Department about a week after the shooting.

About a month after the shooting, Coy was arrested and indicted in the killing of Hill.

Coy did not turn on his body-worn camera until he shot Hill, but the device has a "look-back" function that automatically activated and recorded 60 seconds of the episode without sound, including capturing the shooting.

The body camera footage, which was played for the jury, also showed that as Hill lay dying on the floor of the garage, none of the officers who responded to the incident appeared to immediately provide first aid. The footage showed a woman coming out of the house and telling officers that Hill was a guest and that "he was bringing me Christmas money. He didn't do anything."

The jury reached its decision after hearing closing arguments on Wednesday.

During his summation, Franklin County prosecutor Anthony Pierson told the jury that the evidence proved beyond reasonable doubt that Coy's use of deadly force was not justified, according to his training and national police standards.

"This case isn't about someone who is resisting arrest, where officers pile on him, put a knee on him or something like that and he died," Pierson said. "This case is not about someone who tells cops, 'I hate you. I'm going to shoot you,' It's not about that. It's about a man who was following police orders and was killed for it."

Coy's attorney, Mark Collins, slammed the state's case, saying prosecutors did not prove the charges beyond reasonable doubt.

"We now know that the government's theory that somehow he [Coy] shot an unarmed man and made the entire thing up after the fact," Collins told the jurors, referring to Coy's claims of self-defense after wrongly believing he saw a gun in Hill's hand. "But that's perverse ladies and gentlemen. That's desperate ladies and gentlemen. That's the government ladies and gentlemen."

Collins added, "I'm surprised they didn't say that he planted the keys."

In May 2021, the City of Columbus agreed to a $10 million wrongful death settlement with Hill's family, the highest amount ever paid by the city.

The indictment of Coy in February 2021 came just days after the Columbus City Council also passed Andre's Law, which was named after Hill and requires Columbus police officers to turn on their body cameras when responding to calls and to immediately render first aid after a use-of-force incident.