Victor Hill, the first Black sheriff elected in the southern Atlanta metro area and the man who was acquitted of 27 felony charges less than two years ago, shot and critically injured an acquaintance this past Sunday (May 3) in Gwinnett County, Georgia.
Real estate agent, Gwenevere McCord, 43, is currently in the hospital and reportedly, “not able to give any information due to her condition.” Hill however, refuses to provide any information regarding the shooting, simply saying it was “an accident” after calling in the incident Sunday evening. The sheriff did not cooperate with officials, answer questions, or give a statement, and was allowed to leave the scene without providing any information to the officers on duty.
According to Gwinnett police Sgt. Brian Doan, “when you’re an active sheriff in the state of Georgia, there are certain legal requirements and steps that have to be taken. It’s not just an average citizen, where you can take out a warrant for their arrest.”
Danny Porter, the District Attorney for Gwinnett County followed up in a response saying, “you have to have the warrant issued before the sheriff can be arrested. What I’m trying to figure out is, does that apply to a sheriff all the time, or only in the performance of his official duty.”
The fact that these types of laws are in place in 2015 and Hill is walking around free–and with his job–should come as a surprise. Unfortunately, it isn’t. The investigation is ongoing.