Source: Douglas Sacha / Getty
2025 is less than two weeks old and we’re already seeing law enforcement officers being held accountable for their reckless and fatal conduct.
On June 5, 2024, 34-year-old Rolin G. Hill died after what authorities called a “medical emergency” at the time. Less than a week before his death, on June 4, Hill was arrested after a 7-Eleven store owner called the police to report that he was causing a disturbance and refused to leave. Four months later in October, The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Norfolk announced that Hill died from “positional and mechanical asphyxia due to restraint with neck and torso compression”, his death was ruled a homicide according to WAVY. That ruling led to five deputies involved in his arrest being terminated immediately.
Today, new reporting from WAVY revealed that three of those five former officers, Kevin Wilson, Michael Kidd and Eric Baptiste, have been charged with second-degree murder, and the gruesome body camera footage from the fatal incident was played for the very first time during their arraignment. In the video, Hill is seen trashing about as the deputies attempt to remove a body wrap that was meant to restrain him. Baptiste can be seen clearly kneeling on Hill’s neck a la George Floyd, and punching Hill repeatedly while another officer kneeled on Hill’s torso. It should come as no surprise that Hill can be heard struggling to breathe. In addition to the murder charge, Baptiste was also charged with five counts of assault and battery.
We warned that the following video is graphic and can be distressing to see. Please take stock of your mental health prior to viewing
Virginia Beach Sheriff Rocky Holcomb released a statement speaking to the “disturbing nature” of the body camera footage.
“Today during the bond hearing for the former deputies charged in the case of Rolin Hill, people in the courtroom got to see a glimpse of what I saw on body-worn cameras on June 5, 2024, which prompted me to immediately ask the Virginia State Police for an independent investigation into the incident and put five VBSO deputies on administrative leave. That investigation along with the VBSO Professional Standards Office investigation led me to terminate their employment on Oct. 18, 2024, and resulted in the criminal indictments announced this month.
BOSSIP will continue to follow this story as the trail date for the former deputies has been set for January 21, 2025
