Adam Coy trial: Jury to deliberate in murder case of officer who shot unarmed man

Pierson responded to the defense’s closing argument, stating it is unlikely for a suspected burglar to knock on a door in front of a cop before committing a crime.

Pierson displayed a slideshow on what a reasonable officer would have done if they suspected criminal activity, which included asking Hill for his name and identification, ordering Hill to come to officers at the bottom of driveway near the street and asking Hill to show his hands – none of which Coy did. He claimed Coy fabricated a story to make Hill seem like a violent criminal so he had a reason to shoot an unarmed man.

“It goes from nothing to deadly force without proper evaluation,” Pierson said.

Pierson said Coy’s actions were not consistent with a reasonable officer, adding police officers do not get to shoot people because they are scared.

Collins gave the closing argument for the defense. He emphasized officers do not shoot with the intent to harm or kill, but rather to stop the threat. Collins said that Coy perceived a deadly threat, which was proven by him announcing that he saw a gun at the time of the shooting.

Collins asked the jurors to put themselves in Coy’s shoes, describing how dark it was at the time of the shooting and how Hill only partially complied with Coy’s orders. He showed the jury the keys Hill was holding, stating it is reasonable to mistake them for a silver revolver.

“If an officer reasonably but mistakenly believed there was a deadly threat, the officer would be justified in using deadly force,” Collins said.

Collins said officers are not trained to wait until serious harm actually happens in order to react to a threat, and that they have to think an advance and expect the unexpected.

Pierson gave the closing argument for the prosecution. He emphasized that Hill did not resist arrest or shoot at police, but instead followed police orders, resulting in his death.

Pierson stated Coy did not act reasonably and was not justified in shooting Hill. He emphasized that a mistake is different from an accident. Pierson walked the jury through the charges Coy is facing, explaining why Coy is guilty of each charge. Pierson said Coy knew what he was doing when he shot Hill and knew his actions would physically harm him.

“The evidence shows the defendant shot and killed an unarmed man who was following directions,” Pierson said.

Pierson also undermined Coy’s testimony, stating Coy was not concerned a burglary or crime was taking place, but instead had to backtrack and come up with a story after realizing he shot an unarmed man.

Pierson called Seth Stoughton, a former police officer and law professor, to the stand as a rebuttal witness. Stoughton has served as an expert witness in multiple high-profile police cases, including testifying in the trial of Derek Chauvin, who was convicted for killing George Floyd.

Stoughton testified that Coy did not act in accordance “generally accepted police practices.” Stoughton said Hill’s actions were consistent with the explanation he gave Coy; that he was waiting to meet with someone. He said Hill’s alleged nervous behavior is a normal response when an officer questions a civilian, and that there was not sufficient evidence that a burglary or other serious crime was about to take place or was in progress.

Even if a serious crime was in progress, Stoughton said Coy did not respond consistently with generally accepted police practices. He said an officer who was acting in accordance with accepted police practices would have communicated their suspicions about a potential crime to other officers and a dispatcher via radio. Stoughton also said Coy’s approach to the garage did not give him the benefit of being able to take cover if needed.

Stoughton testified deadly force by an officer is only appropriate when an individual poses an imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury to another person. He stated evidence suggests Hill would not be reasonably perceived as having the ability or intent to cause death or serious bodily harm.

Jury selection began on Monday, Oct. 21, with the process taking a total of three days. On Wednesday, Oct. 23, 12 jurors and four alternates were sworn in, then taken to view the scene where Coy shot Hill.

Opening statements took place on Thursday, with attorneys revealing that Coy and Hill had interacted before the shooting. When Coy initially arrived at the scene, he approached Hill’s vehicle. It was then that Hill showed Coy a text on his phone, and told him he was waiting to meet with someone. The defense claimed during this interaction, Hill was “wide-eyed and jittery.”

The prosecution called two witnesses to the stand Thursday. The man who called the police about Hill’s car was the first to testify, followed by Amy Detweiler, the officer who was with Coy at the time of the shooting. She testified that she did not see a gun on Hill or perceive a deadly threat.

Detweiler’s testimony continued into Friday, before the prosecution called both a responding Columbus police officer and medic to the stand to discuss what happened in the moments after the shooting. A crime scene investigator walked the jury through a plethora of crime scene photos, and a forensic pathologist discussed the injuries Hill faced as a result of the shooting.

On Monday, the defense called its first witness, an expert on police practices, to the stand. The witness, Kevin Davis, testified Coy’s actions – including choosing to investigate what Hill was doing and using deadly force when he perceived his life was in danger – were consistent with nationally recognized police practices.

The defense called Coy to the stand next, where he recounted the shooting from his perspective. He detailed behavior from Hill and circumstances leading up to the shooting that he found suspicious, as well as how he feared for his life when he mistook Hill’s keys for a gun. He described the early morning hours of the shooting as “the worst night of [his] life.”

The defense’s last witness was James Scanlon, a retired Columbus police officer and expert witness in law enforcement use of force. Scanlon testified Coy’s actions were consistent with federal law enforcement standards and training, and that officers are allowed to make mistakes, as long as they are “objectively reasonable.” After Scanlon’s testimony, the defense rested its case.

On Dec. 22, 2020, Columbus police received a nonemergency call reporting a suspicious vehicle in the 1000 block of Oberlin Drive on the northwest side of the city. Coy, a 19-year veteran of the force, and fellow officer Amy Detweiler responded to the report around 1:50 a.m., when they spotted an open garage and walked toward it with their flashlights on.

Hill, who was later determined to be a guest at the home, was in the garage. Body camera video shows he began walking toward officers with a brightly lit phone screen held up in one hand, while his other hand was at his side and not clearly visible. It was then that Coy shot Hill, striking him four times. Less than nine seconds passed from the time Hill was illuminated by a flashlight to when he was shot.

Coy did not turn on his body camera until after the shooting. Due to a lookback feature that retained the previous 60 seconds of video without any audio, the shooting was captured. However, what was said before shots were fired was not recorded.

During a later interview completed by the police department, Detweiler claimed that Coy asked Hill to exit the garage using a normal tone and Hill did not say anything in response, but turned and walked out of the garage. She revealed she did not see a gun or observe any threats from Hill but heard Coy yell, “There’s a gun in his other hand! There’s a gun in his other hand!” just before firing.

Multiple officers arrived about five minutes after Hill was shot, and roughly another five minutes passed before an officer gave Hill any medical assistance. He was transported to a local hospital and pronounced dead at 2:35 a.m. No weapon was recovered at the scene. Approximately one week after the shooting, Coy was fired from the Columbus Division of Police.

In October 2021, Coy’s trial was set for March 2022. However, over the course of years, the trial has been delayed three times due to Coy’s battle with Hodgkin’s lymphoma. He is now considered healthy enough to stand trial.