Murder Trial Delayed Again For Ex-DeKalb Officer Who Shot Veteran Anthony Hill
Over the weekend, about 300 protesters gathered near the DeKalb County Courthouse. They were calling attention to the upcoming murder trial of Robert Olsen. Olsen, then a DeKalb police officer, was charged in the death of U.S. Air Force veteran Anthony Hill in 2015. Hill was wandering naked around his apartment complex during what his family believes was a mental health crisis.
Lisa Hagen / WABE
“We really shouldn’t have to gather like this,” attorney Gerald Griggs told a crowd of 300 protesters gathered near the DeKalb County Courthouse over the weekend.
They came to draw attention to the upcoming murder trial of Robert Olsen, the then-DeKalb police officer who in 2015 shot and killed Anthony Hill, a U.S. Air Force veteran who was wandering naked around his apartment complex during what his family believes was a mental health crisis.
That trial had been scheduled to get started this week, which is what brought demonstrators to the courthouse. It has now been postponed another month.
Organizers read a letter to the crowd sent by Hill’s sister, Tamara Giummo.
“It has been difficult waiting for an answer for so long, and we are disappointed that the pre-trial has been postponed for the second time,” Giummo wrote.
According to the DeKalb County District Attorney’s office, the delay is related to a separate, high-profile murder trial: prominent Atlanta attorney Tex McIver. McIver shares a defense attorney with Olsen.
Demonstrators vowed to be back when the trial in Hill’s death does begin, now scheduled for May 21.
“We’re going to pack out the courtroom, so there’s justice,” Griggs urged the crowd.
Many were unhappy with the three years it’s taken for the case to reach trial.
WABE legal analyst Page Pate says it’s not unusual for cases involving murder charges, which often require forensics and lab reports from investigators, to take this long.
“The other issue is the court’s scheduling of cases like this, in some counties, can take longer than other counties. That’s a factor of busy dockets and busy prosecutors,” Pate said.
The public response to Hill’s story was one of a pair of police shooting cases that helped catalyze the formation of Atlanta’s Black Lives Matter movement. At the time, Olsen was reportedly the first Georgia law enforcement officer in more than five years to face prosecution for shooting and killing a civilian.
Hill’s family, as well as his own posts on social media, indicated Hill lived with bipolar disorder. They have advocated for better mental health training for police, including greater use of crisis intervention teams.
At the demonstration Sunday, in addition to drawing attention to Hill’s case, activists called attention to what they see as a broader problem.
“As you know, there’s been an epidemic around the country around police-involved shootings of African-American people,” Griggs said.
He led the crowd in a meditative exercise, naming black victims of police shootings whose stories have gained national attention in recent years, as well as those in Georgia who’ve received less national media coverage.
“We shouldn’t have to worry about if our sons or daughters, our nieces or nephews are going to come home or even stay home and be safe. That’s what this movement is about,” Griggs said.
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