Former Georgia cop who fatally shot unarmed Air Force veteran Anthony Hill sentenced to 12 years in prison
A former Georgia police officer who fatally shot an Air Force veteran was sentenced on Friday, November 1, after being found guilty last month of aggravated assault, making a false statement, and two counts violating his oath of office.
Robert Olsen fatally shot 26-year-old Air Force veteran Anthony Hill who had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD),
Hill had returned from Afghanistan and was said to have attempted to save children by running into an explosion. He returned with issues, having been medically discharged, and was having trouble with his medication causing muscular side effects at the time. He had stopped taking them according to his girlfriend, Bridget Anderson, believing he would see his Veterans' Association (VA) doctor within the week.
One night in March 2015, he wandered naked out of his suburban Atlanta apartment. Within moments of approaching Olsen, who was at the time an officer with the DeKalb County Police Department, Hill—who was unarmed—was shot twice and killed.
Olsen was sentenced Friday by the DeKalb County Superior Court Judge LaTisha Dear Jackson to a total of 20 years, with 12 years in prison followed by eight years of probation. As the sentence was delivered, Olsen was in tears and left with deputies after the sentence.
The shooting sparked widespread anger coming in the months after the shooting of Michael Brown as Black Lives Matter and other advocacy groups got involved to seek justice for Hill who was African-American.
Olsen, who is white, had his trial overlapping with the trials of two white police officers who shot unarmed black men.
Hill's property manager had testified she was worried for his safety because he was behaving erratically and had called 911 three times.
Olsen was told by dispatch that there was a naked man who was "possibly demented".
Recently, in Dallas, former officer Amber Guyger was found guilty of shooting Botham Jean in his own apartment. Guyger testified that she mistook Jean's apartment for her own and said that she thought there was a burglar in her home. She was sentenced to serve 10 years in prison.