Though David Hillis will spend the next year behind bars, this penalty isn’t nearly enough for the family of Marcus Glover, the man Hillis shot and killed.
Delonda Glover, Marcus’ aunt, shouted at assistant Summit County prosecutors after Hillis’ sentencing Wednesday, saying the gun specification that carries a mandatory three-year prison term shouldn’t have been removed. The Glover family thinks Hillis has been given preferential treatment because of his family connections — his father is a retired Summit County sheriff’s deputy — and because he is white, while Glover was black.
“If a white man got killed, you would never take away the gun specification!” the aunt yelled. “You’ve got to go to bed and live with this. It don’t matter to you. A man got killed.”
The Glover family left the courthouse peacefully without any confrontation with Hillis’ supporters as was feared and as had happened between the two families after past court proceedings. Five deputies were in the courtroom and the sentencing was moved to a different location because of the previous clashes.
Visiting Judge Richard Reinbold sentenced Hillis to six years, but then suspended five years and ordered that he serve one year in the Summit County Jail rather than prison. Hillis, who had been free on bond, left the courtroom in handcuffs.
Hillis and his family were pushing for probation, while Glover’s family held numerous protests urging that he get the maximum prison time. Glover’s family wore T-shirts that said “Justice 4 Marcus” to the sentencing.
“You are a murderer,” Crystal Thomas, Glover’s mother, told Hillis before the judge issued his sentence.
Hillis, 22, pleaded guilty in Summit County Common Pleas Court in August to a reduced charge of voluntary manslaughter. He faced up to 11 years in prison. Under a plea agreement, prosecutors dropped the gun specification.
Prosecutors and police have said Terry Tart and Glover, 25, forced their way into Hillis’ Akron home in August 2015 and tried to rob Hillis at gunpoint. The two men fled and Hillis fired shots at them from his front porch. A bullet struck Glover in the head. Glover was about 70 yards away from Hillis’ property, was wearing latex gloves and had a gun, according to prosecutors.
Tart, 38, was sentenced last month to nine years in prison. He said during his sentencing that he and Glover went to Hillis’ home to talk to Hillis about how he had shorted them of marijuana, and a disagreement ensued. Tart said he punched Hillis, but he and Glover fled when Hillis’ girlfriend told them she had a gun.
Thomas, who believes Tart’s account of what happened, spoke again at Hillis’ sentencing, reminiscing about her son and venting her frustration. She also took the unusual step of chastising the judge, saying she thought he had his mind made up.
“I was told not to say these things, not to make the judge mad,” she said. “I lost a child. I don’t care how you feel about what I’m saying. I’m trying my best to be respectful to the courts and to you, but until you walk in my shoes and lose someone, you will never know what I’m feeling.”
Assistant Summit County Prosecutor Pete Daly told Reinbold his office recommended the maximum sentence.
Marie Donofrio, Hillis’ mother, apologized to Thomas for her son’s death. She said her son has many supporters who weren’t in court but are backing him.
She said she is proud of her son for taking responsibility for what he did.
“I have 100 percent confidence that, whatever judgment you place upon him, he will face it like a man and will have respect for authorities,” she said.
Hillis, who showed no emotion during the sentencing, turned and faced Thomas to also apologize.
“I am so sorry for your loss,” he said. “I can only imagine what you’re going through.”
Reinbold, a retired judge from Stark County, said he decided on Hillis’ sentencing several months ago. He said the decision was his to make and anyone who isn’t happy about it should blame him.
“I’m going to take a gamble that this will be the last time you will appear before me,” the judge told Hillis.
“If I am wrong, there will be a remedy,” he said, referring to how a probation violation could land Hillis in more trouble.
After the sentencing, deputies escorted Hillis’ supporters out of the courtroom and asked the Glover family to remain. The Glover family then trickled out, with Delonda Glover voicing her frustration before she left.
Assistant Prosecutor Brad Gessner, who was on the receiving end of Glover’s tirade, said he understood the frustration.
“To the family, the system doesn’t always make sense,” he said.
Thomas said she has warned her other two sons against seeking vengeance. She doesn’t want to lose them, too.
“It seems to me it’s open season on the black man around here,” she said, tears streaming down her face.
Stephanie Warsmith can be reached at 330-996-3705, swarsmith@thebeaconjournal.com and on Twitter: @swarsmithabj . Nick Glunt can be reached at nglunt@thebeaconjournal.com or 330-996-3565.