Jurors on Friday began deliberating the case against former DeKalb County, Georgia, police officer
Robert "Chip" Olsen.
Olsen is accused of killing Anthony Hill, a 26-year-old US Air Force veteran of the Afghanistan war. Hill was naked and unarmed at the time when Olsen shot him in the chest and neck in March 2015.
Olsen, who is white, faces several charges, including two counts of felony murder and one count of aggravated assault.
On the day he was shot, someone in Hill's neighborhood called police to report a man "acting deranged, knocking on doors, and crawling around on the ground naked," then-DeKalb County Police Chief Cedric Alexander said after the shooting.
"When the male saw the officer, he charged, running at the officer. The officer called him to stop while stepping backwards, drew his weapon, and fired two shots," Alexander said.
Hill's girlfriend, Bridget Anderson, said he had
a history of mental illness and struggled to get the support he needed from the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Olsen did not take the stand during the
trial.
During closing arguments on Thursday, the prosecution called for checks and balances within police departments and claimed that Olsen did not follow protocol when using force.
Lance Cross, an assistant district attorney, grabbed a baton and extended it in front of the jury.
"This is a weapon. He could've used this. We wouldn't be here," he said.
Defense attorney Amanda Clark Palmer put her hands-on Olsen's shoulder and said he was "a good cop who had to make a tough decision".
"Chip Olsen is not a murderer and is not guilty of any count in this indictment," she said.
Witnesses testified Olsen asked Hill several times to stop as he ran or charged towards the former officer, slowing down right before the young veteran was shot twice.
The prosecution argued witnesses said Hill had his arms up while naked with nowhere to hide a weapon.
In opening statements last week, prosecutors said Olsen was uncomfortable when he saw Hill running naked outside the apartment complex, but it didn't give him a reason to shoot.
"How does a human being react when you have 6 or 7 seconds, and someone is running at you?" Samuel said.
Since 2005, there have been 106 law enforcement officers who have been arrested for murder or manslaughter resulting from an on-duty shooting, according to research by
Philip Stinson, a professor of criminal justice at Bowling Green State University in Ohio.
Stinson's figures show that 35 officers have been convicted of a crime that resulted from the on-duty shooting. The criminal cases for 45 officers didn't result in a conviction, and another 26 cases are still pending, including Olsen's case, according to Stinson.
Anthony Hill death: Another jury is about to decide the fate of a police officer charged with killing an unarmed black man - CNN
