A Franklin County judge has denied a defense attorney's request to move the trial of the former Columbus police officer charged with the killing of Andre Hill in Columbus.
The 47-year-old Hill, who was Black, was fatally shot by ex-Columbus officer Adam Coy, who is white, on Dec. 22 of last year. Hill was shot as he emerged from a garage holding up a cellphone.
Coy's attorney Mark Collins argued that extensive publicity will make it impossible to assemble an impartial jury in Franklin County. Prosecutors opposed the request.
Franklin County Judge Stephen McIntosh denied the motion Wednesday and said a fair trial was possible in the area.
Hill was fatally shot in the early morning hours on December 22 by Coy, who was responding to a non-emergency call on Oberlin Drive in Northwest Columbus. Hill was inside a garage, delivering Christmas money according to the homeowners when Coy and another officer approached him.
Coy's body camera footage shows that he fatally shot Hill within 10 seconds of approaching him in the garage. However, because Coy did not activate his camera until after the shooting, there is no audio for the first 60 seconds of the footage – and therefore no recording of Coy's interaction with Hill.
The footage shows Coy firing his gun just seconds after Hill turned around to face officers with a cell phone in his hand. Hill was unarmed. Another officer at the scene has said she did not think Hill posed a threat of any kind. Coy has pleaded not guilty.
Coy and other officers at the scene also neglected to administer first aid to Hill for more than 10 minutes after the shooting.
Both Coy's failures to activate his bodycam and provide aid were cited by the city of Columbus in its decision to fire him the week after Hill's death.
Coy has been charged with murder, reckless homicide, felonious assault and dereliction of duty charges.
In May, the City of Columbus agreed to pay $10 million to Hill's family. The payout is the largest in the city's history.
