Emotions were high Tuesday as a man charged with running down a sheriff’s deputy appeared for a no-bond hearing, which quickly descended into chaos.
“That’s my brother, that’s my brother,” a man screamed as 38-year-old Rodney Hinton Jr. appeared in court, prompting deputies to lead Hinton Jr. out of the courtroom, NBC News reported. “Everybody, be calm. We’re going to get through this,” the judge said when Hinton Jr. returned, NBC reported.
Authorities charged Hinton Jr. with aggravated murder. According to reports, Cincinnati police shot and killed his 18-year-old son, Ryan Hinton, the previous day.
The deputy, identified as Larry Henderson, was directing traffic at about 1 p.m. on Friday at the intersection of Martin Luther King and Burnet Woods drives near the University of Cincinnati, which was holding its graduation ceremony. According to NBC News, Henderson recently retired and was working as a “special deputy” the day he was killed.
The sheriff’s office plans to retire Henderson’s badge number, 129.
Clyde Bennett, Hinton Jr.’s attorney, pleaded not guilty on his client’s behalf and called the conduct a “classic...classic mental illness.” A grand jury is set to consider the case when it convenes on May 12.
Hamilton County Municipal Court Judge Tyrone Yates ordered Hinton Jr. to remain behind bars at the Clermont County Jail and undergo mental health treatment.
“Through the intersection, directly at where deputy Henderson was standing, struck deputy Henderson and the metal utility pole on the north east corner,” Detective Carl Beebe said, according to WLWT-TV.
When asked whether there was any evidence Hinton Jr. tried to stop, Beebe said, according to the television station, “No. there were no indications he tried to break, stop or otherwise avoid deputy Henderson.”
On Friday morning, Hinton and his family met at their lawyer’s office to watch police footage of his son’s death, the BBC reported. The footage made Hinton “understandably distraught,” and he could not finish watching it, lawyer Michael Wright said in a statement, per the report.
“He actually left the parking lot, followed by some family members and another car, and then a few minutes later returned to the parking lot ... drove through the parking lot and left the parking lot again,” Beebe said, according to NBC News.
According to Fox 19, the son was “one of four people inside a stolen vehicle that was found in a parking lot Thursday on Warsaw Avenue in East Price Hill.” According to reports, the son brandished a gun at police during the investigation.
Cincinnati police have not identified the officer involved in Ryan Hinton’s shooting.
“I want to give condolences out to the officers who got hurt, who got killed, the whole family,” NBC News quoted Rodney Hinton Sr., Ryan’s grandfather, as saying on Monday. “I’m gonna ask for forgiveness, and I’ve been praying hard for the officer that killed my grandson.”
Separately, GoFundMe apologized to the Cincinnati Fraternal Order of Police for allowing postings to raise money in support of Hinton Jr., WKRC-TV reported.
“GoFundMe’s Terms of Service prohibit fundraisers for the legal defense of violent crimes,” GoFundMe Director of Policy & Engagement Emily Barson wrote in a letter to Ken Kober, the police group’s president, per the report. “Consistent with this long-standing policy, any fundraisers for the legal defense of someone charged with a violent crime are removed from the platform, and any money donated to that campaign is fully refunded to the person who sent in the donation.
“I can assure you that there will be zero tolerance for this type of behavior on our platform,” Barson added.
