Ex-deputies in Virginia are charged with murder over inmate’s death while restrained

By The Associated Press

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (AP) — Three former sheriff’s deputies in Virginia have been charged with second-degree murder over the death of a man they restrained at a local jail last year, prosecutors announced Friday.

A special grand jury returned the indictments after meeting three times to hear evidence, said Colin Stolle, the Virginia Beach commonwealth attorney.

“As in all cases involving the tragic loss of life, my office is committed to seeking justice for Rolin Hill,” the prosecutor said.

The local medical examiner found Hill, 34, died from “positional and mechanical asphyxia due to restraint with neck and torso compression.” The office ruled his death was a homicide.

Hill was arrested in June on charges of trespassing, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct, the Virginia Beach Sheriff’s Office said last year. The office said Hill was booked into the jail and deputies restrained him because he was uncooperative and combative. He experienced a medical emergency and was taken to the hospital, the office said.

Virginia Beach Sheriff Rocky Holcomb said last year that his office would investigate but had also asked the Virginia State Police to conduct an independent review. Following updates from state police in October, Holcomb said the deputies were no longer employed by his office.

The former deputies who’ve been charged are Eric G. Baptiste, 39, of Virginia Beach; Michael C. Kidd, 39, of Chesapeake; and Kevin B. Wilson, 34, of Virginia Beach.

An attorney for Baptiste, Brian Latuga, expressed condolences to Hill’s family in a statement to The Associated Press. But Latuga said Baptiste “had an exemplary career dedicated to serving and protecting this community” and “has been wrongfully accused of a horrendous crime.”

“We ask the public to withhold judgment upon Mr. Baptiste as the legal process takes place,” Latuga said. “We are confident that the evidence will clear his name of any wrongdoing in the unfortunate death of Mr. Hill.”

Lawyers for Kidd and Wilson did not immediately respond to emails from the AP seeking comment on their behalf.

Holcomb, the sheriff, said in a statement Friday he has “faith in the criminal justice system to ensure justice is served for both Rolin Hill and the individuals involved in this incident.”

WAVY-TV reported in June that the Virginia Beach chapter of the NAACP had raised concerns about the circumstances surrounding Hill’s death.

The Virginian-Pilot newspaper reported in October that it had run Hill’s obituary, which said he was an Eagle Scout who loved surfing, skateboarding and hanging out with his family.

It also stated that “mental health in America is still a major issue,” and requested that any donations go to mental health foundations.

In the United States, police rarely face criminal charges when civilians die after officers use physical force.

An investigation led by the AP found that over a decade, more than 1,000 people died after police subdued them with physical force that is not supposed to be lethal. In hundreds of these encounters, officers broke multiple safety guidelines, including when they pinned people face down.