GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. -- A Gwinnett County grand jury indicted Clayton County Sheriff Victor Hill on a reckless conduct charge in connection with the May 3 shooting of a friend.
Hill was with McCord at her Gwinnett County workplace when, prosecutors say, he fired a shot from his service revolver into Gwenevere McCord's abdomen. She required weeks of hospitalization. Hill told police she was shot accidentally while he demonstrated police tactics.
Prior to Thursday's hearing, Gwinnett District Attorney Danny Porter notified Hill that "the District Attorney's Office will present a criminal case charging you with one count of Reckless Conduct." The letter is accompanied by a proposed indictment that prosecutors will present to the Grand Jury. The reckless conduct charge is a misdemeanor, and is the same charge levied against Hill when he was arrested in May.
"We considered other charges. They didn't seem to fit the evidence that was revealed throughout our investigation and and so we think the most appropriate charge is the reckless conduct charge," said Porter.
In the letter, Porter notifies Hill that "you may avail yourself of your right to be present during the presentation of evidence and your right to make a statement not subject to cross-examination." Porter says Georgia law gives Hill that right because he is a law enforcement officer.
The shooting took place on a Sunday evening, two counties outside of Hill's jurisdiction, in the company of a personal friend. Porter acknowledges that it's arguable that Hill was not acting in his official capacity as a law enforcement officer that day, which could invalidate Hill's right to speak to the Grand Jury. But Porter says he has chosen to allow Hill to make a statement in order to avoid litigation.
Porter said that Hill read a statement during the hearing and re-enacted the shooting that hurt his friend.
11Alive's Doug Richards will have full report tonight at 5 and 6!
