A Georgia cop who was facing life in prison for first degree murder was acquitted of that charge but convicted of other charges that can land him in prison for 35 years.
Robert Olsen, who was a DeKalb County police officer when he shot and killed a naked man who was having a mental episode in 2015, was convicted of aggravated assault, violation of oath and making a false statement.
He is scheduled to be sentenced on November 1, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
They found him not guilty on two felony murder counts, sparing him a sentence of life in prison. But jurors reached guilty verdicts on four lesser charges: two counts of violation of oath of office, aggravated assault and making a false statement.
As the forewoman read the verdict, Chip Olsen began to sob. His wife, Kathy Olsen, was inconsolable, yelling, “No! No! No!’ She was then escorted from the courtroom by a deputy and could be heard wailing outside in the hallway.
Emotions also got the better of two jurors, who cried as their verdicts were announced. Jurors deliberated for about 27 hours over six days.
The shooting took place on March 9, 2015 after Olsen responded to a call about a suspicious person at an apartment complex.
Anthony Hill, 26, an unarmed Afghanistan War veteran, had stripped naked after not taking his medication for bipolarism. He also suffered from PTSD.
Hill was very open about his mental illness on Twitter and had stopped taken his medication because of muscular side effects. He was planning on visiting a doctor at the VA later that week.
He was also a staunch supporter of police, having interned at the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Department before joining the US Air Force. And prior to his shooting death, he had no negative interactions with police, including any arrests.
But by stripping naked, the unarmed man somehow made Olsen fear for his life.
Olsen had turned down a plea deal from the state that included a 20-year sentence with 15 to serve.
