Victor Hill trial: Suspended Clayton County sheriff guilty on 6 of 7 federal charges
ATLANTA - After multiple days of deliberation, a federal jury has found suspended Clayton County Sheriff Victor Hill guilty on six of seven charges he violated the constitutional rights of pre-trial detainees by having them strapped into restraint chairs inside the jail for hours at a time.
While prosecutors allege Hill used the chair arbitrarily to punish detainees, his defense team argued the sheriff employed the device as a preventative measure to help control inmates' potentially dangerous behavior.
The jury began their deliberations Friday afternoon and continued through Wednesday afternoon when the jury came back with a verdict.
The jury found Hill not guilty on the fifth count. Prosecutors did not provide direct proof that Hill gave the order to restrain the suspect, as they did with other detainees. The judge polled the jury of nine men and three women, who all confirmed the verdict read in court was the verdict they'd reached.
Clayton County Sheriff Victor Hill indicted
A sketch of Clayton County Sheriff Victor Hill in a federal courtroom. (Provided by Lauren Lacy)
Federal prosecutors allege Hill violated the Constitutional rights of pre-trial detainees inside the jail between December 2019 and May 2020.
Seven alleged victims were held in restraint chairs for hours, according to an indictment.
The U.S. Attorney who indicted Hill, Kurt Erskine, said the sheriff harmed detainees and affected public trust in law enforcement.
The indictment claims Hill violated his own policy that a restraint chair can be used for a violent or uncontrollable person to prevent injury or property damage if other techniques don’t work and that the chair "will never be authorized as a form of punishment."
The indictment alleges a deputy arrested a teenager accused of vandalism in April 2020, and the deputy texted Hill a photo of the teen in a patrol car.
"How old is he?" Hill texted, according to an indictment.
"17," the deputy responded.
"Chair," Hill responded.
Hill is accused of calling a landscaper who had a dispute with one of Hill’s deputies. The indictment says he instructed the deputy to take out a warrant for harassing communications. Hill allegedly sent a fugitive squad to try to arrest the man on the misdemeanor charge, the indictment says. The man hired a lawyer and cooperated with jail staff before Hill ordered him placed in the restraint chair, the indictment says.
A man arrested in May 2020 for speeding and driving with a suspended driver’s license was also strapped into the restraint chair on Hill’s orders, according to the indictment. A sheriff’s office employee then put a hood over the man’s head and he was hit twice in the face, causing him to bleed, the indictment says.
Some people were left restrained so long they urinated in the chair, the indictment says.
Gov. Brian Kemp suspends Victor Hill
In an executive order, Gov. Brian Kemp suspended Hill from office pending the outcome of a federal case against him.
The governor appointed a review commission on May 19 to comb through the federal indictment and decide whether the charges related to Hill's duties as sheriff and would negatively impact his ability to carry them out.
Victor Hill fights suspension
Hill pleaded not guilty to the charges in the indictment.
A Fulton County Superior Court judge denied a request to override the governor's suspension.
Hill's defense team said the detainees had exhibited violent or uncontrollable behavior before they arrived at the jail or displayed what Sheriff Hill called "pre-attack indicators" that showed they could act out.
Lawyers for the suspended sheriff said the charges are politically motivated.
Victor Hill Trial
Two former jail detainees testified that deputies kept them in restraint chairs for hours, causing them to urinate on themselves while they were bound.
One of them testified it felt "like torture."
Drew Findling, one of Hill’s lawyers, cross-examined both men about "inconsistencies" between their trial testimony and what they had previously told investigators. Findling noted that one man told the FBI he had been knocked unconscious as police tried to arrest him, but stated in court that he was faking. The defense attorney also questioned one of the detainees about their account to the FBI that the state trooper who pulled him over had been rude and uncooperative.
Hill testified restraint chairs can be used as a protective measure and some of the people who were detained had a history of violence.
"If they suffered pain, that was not the intent," Hill said.
Hill was the key witness as the defense presented their case. Defense attorney Marissa Goldberg walked Hill through the circumstances of each alleged victim, and he explained why he decided to put them in restraint chairs.
Prosecutors, however, argued that none of the detainees were exhibiting that behavior during their time in jail and did not pose an active threat at the time they were put in the chairs.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.