Shanna Hillary is the eldest of Nick Hillary's five children. Photo: Brit Hanson, Groups call for independent probe of Garret Phillips murder, Groups call for independent probe of Garrett Phillips murder, David Sommerstein (News Director), cleared in Garrett Phillips death almost four years ago, local police and prosecutors declared the case closed, Nick Hillary's civil rights case, and how it links to a broader moment of reckoning, A phone call from inside the investigation, Gumball machine serves up free poetry in the Adirondacks, Not in Old Forge's backyard? Per The Daily Beast, Jones was involved in the immediate aftermath of Phillips' death; he went with Phillips' mother to police interviews and called dispatchers to get information on what was going on. Photo: Brit Hanson, Brian Phillips pushed hard to get a resolution to his nephew's case. The two-part HBO documentary "Who Killed. In 2006, Hillary was acquitted of murder after a trial before a judge without a jury, The jury pool came from the same individuals who had elected the district attorney, Hillary, 45, told The News. His neighbours turned against the proud father, and he was soon fired from his job back in 2011. is available to stream on Sky Crime. 24. After Hillary was cleared, Rain claimed the case was closed because she still believed he was guilty, which is crazy, according to Garbus. Oral "Nick" Hillary and Tandy Cyrus are pictured in an undated photo. But who's looking, you know, 40 yards off, 50 yards off the street on a dark, rainy night for someone jumping out a window?". Hillary has adamantly denied the charge, saying from day one he was innocent. Chronicling the five years after the murder, the film is an eye-opening look at how justice is delivered and delayed. Garrett had been strangled and suffocated. The Accused: With Lester Holt. It's simple.. ", 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. In most cases, there's a hierarchy. As Tandy would tell us, Nick was rigid -- a man with a plan for every day. Police said they tested every person with access to the apartment, including residents and maintenance staff. ", North County Public Radio - NPR for the Adirondack North Country, For years, there were no formal charges in Garrett Phillips' murder. All of other window screens in the home were intact, Murray said. Garrett didnt ever want to be alone with Nick, even though Nick said he never had any problems with Garrett. The police asked him why he turned the opposite way. I mean this is something that like is stated in the documentary, he explained: For 20 years I spent building my entire legacy up until that point and within 20 minutes they destroyed., Hillary added: Up to a point now Im trying to clear the rubble in the process of hoping to rebuild.. Pasqua and local police have declined to comment. "In [the Garrett Phillips] case, the head person is a chief of police who ran the investigation originally, is convinced that they got the right person, and is not going to want to devote a lot of time and resources of his personnel into something that hethinks is useless," Trainum said. Starting with talking heads with the neighbors who first called 9-1-1 after hearing a crash and ominous moaning coming from inside the Phillips apartment, Garbus takes her audience back to Phillips last moments and then expands the story to include similar interviews with police and journalists alike who investigated the crime, as well as the former district attorney who pushed for an arrest, Phillips uncle Brian, and the man who stood trial for the crime (Hillary). They are the only reason that Nick is not in prison, she says. Years passed with no arrest, and now Nick Hillary, a former college soccer coach and an ex-boyfriend of Phillips's mother, awaits trial on a murder charge. Jones said he had had a "civil" conversation with Hillary in front of Hillary's home, but Hillary did not categorize it that way. He was 19 at the time of the 2013 arrest, which makes him the same age as the Brandon D. Murphy in question for Garrett's murder. The people who lived downstairs didn't report hearing or seeing anything, Murray said. Nick had to leave the station that day in a hazmat suit. When he arrived back home to the second-floor apartment he shared with his mother and younger brother , someone would strangle and suffocate the life out of the boy. Garrett and his family lived on the second floor, so the police determined that the killer would have had to jump on the landing and then down to the ground. Garbus questioned them about their missteps and lack of physical or DNA evidence tying Hillary to the crime. If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page - we'd love to hear from you. A police chief whose brother names his successor as mayor. He said he had gotten it a week ago from moving furniture. New information has come to light and is being investigated in the 2011 murder of 12-year-old Garrett J. Phillips. For five years my family and I have been livin underneath this cloud, said Nick. Dec 18, 2020. He also said he'd talked with police and met with Garrett Phillips mother but he didn't want to discuss his findings. Its so heartbreaking, and I feel bad for his family. The duo were joined by lawyer Mani Tafari, who also shared his view on the case. All Rights Reserved. Theyre calling for the state Attorney General to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the 12 year-old boys death. Formal complaints were filed against him for violence and abuse. "I dont know that its fair to them to keep reliving it unless something new or different happens. What do you think about this case? "The Garrett Phillips case is just full of the appearance of impropriety.". Tonight, ABC News and Dateline will both investigate the 2011 murder of Garrett Phillips. Nothing is ever 100 percent, but Nick is a highly decent lovely person, with no sign of a temper and no weird evasions, explained Garbus, who says she came to the table with an open mind. Photo: David Sommerstein, D.A. David SommersteinGroups call for independent probe of Garret Phillips murder. NCPR checked in with Pasqua last month. However, Shanna-Kays phone records show she texted her father at 6:24pm, asking Whats for dinner?. Tafari, a lawyer who provided legal support to his former Tilden High School friend, doesnt believe this film can change a corrupt system. Brian Phillips helped produce hundreds of yard signs that read "Justice for Garrett," with a picture of the boy, smiling. Director of the documentary Liz Garbus, added: And what you dont know if you havent seen the documentary yet is Nick was an all American soccer champion and a graduate from Saint Lawrence University and became a coach at Clarkson, coaching a great soccer team and a military veteran. Garrett Phillips' mother, Tandy Cyrus. In 2011, Garrett Phillips, who was just 12-years-old, was killed in his upstate New York home. Nick is innocent, and cannot be retried. It doesnt say what his relationship was like. Tandy Cyrus, Garretts mom, was at her other sons basketball practice. Oct. 24 marked the ninth anniversary of the murder of 12-year-old Garrett Phillips. The car is seen driving to the back of the lot into a parking space. As le He is also a Jamaican immigrant, who was living in a community that was 94 % white a fact crucial to understanding how the justice system failed Garrett, Brooklyn-based director Liz Garbus told the Daily News. But he backed off after the main suspect was acquitted. Garrett Phillips was a 12 year old boy who lived with his mom, Tandy and brother, Aaron, in Potsdam, New York. Cyrus says that when she showed up at the hospital, her son had bruises all over his face, and Marks on his neck. By the time Liz Garbuss two-part documentary Who Killed Garrett Phillips? debuts on HBO, there could be a new public lead in the case of the murdered titular 12-year-old. Nick Hillary 20/20 Interview After Found Not Guilty of Murder. "But the day of the verdict, something just hit me. They moved in just months before Garrett died, after Cyrus and Hillary broke up. Now, it looks like as if the case is not over after all not since new information made its way to police. That's a remarkable jump from the window.". They realized that the killer could have had an injury since the jump was pretty far. Sky Crime launched the documentary Who Killed Garrett Phillips? "It was over five years whether it was selling stickers, selling T-shirts, [raising money for] the reward, " Brian Phillips said in an interview with NCPR last week. On the same courthouse steps in Canton where Hillary walked away a free man after being cleared in Garrett Phillips death almost four years ago, a couple dozen people held a press conference Friday afternoon. When police arrived and got into the apartment, they found Garrett unresponsive on the floor in a bedroom. Yet, the suspect was indicted for a second time before he was found innocent by Judge Felix Catena, in 2016. Nick said he had nothing against the boy or his mother and that his alibi witnesses, his daughter and an assistant coach, would place him elsewhere at the time of the murder. Advocates for the wrongfully accused are trying to draw new attention to the murder of Garrett Phillips in Potsdam nine years ago. What makes this weirder is that Brandon and his dad both say they saw a white male with dirty blonde hair go in out of 100 Market Street around 3 - 330. Residents of upstate New York, where Phillips was killed, are reportedly split between those who believe in Hillarys guilt and those who believe in his innocence. [2] And we talked of his passion: Soccer. For years, no one was named in Phillips death. 1. But their approaches to parenting seemed very different. Phillips also knows that the former DA, Mary Rain, had her law license suspended last summer. "It was a true tragedy," he said. Hillary was considered a suspect because he was an ex-boyfriend of the boy's mother. The prosecution, he ruled, had not made its circumstantial case "beyond a reasonable doubt." Fourteen at the time of the murder, she was one of his two alibi witnesses. Hillary does not shy away from the scrutiny the film will bring, saying his ordeal will have had purpose if it saves others from similar mistreatment by law enforcement. July 24, 2019. It was two days after 12 year-old Garrett Phillips was found strangled to death in his home in Potsdam. It was almost Halloween, a rainy late Monday afternoon in Potsdam, NY, when a security camera high atop a high school recorded a video that still makes the hair on your neck stand-up. In April 2012, Nick filed a suit against the police department for how he was treated. But in a county thats population is more than 90% white, the killing of a child -- a crime that screamed out for justice -- became an investigation that boiled with questions of racial fairness. New York, 2011: Garrett Phillips, 12, is found strangled. "He was something else. Nick did drive a blue car, however the footage is so blurry that you cant tell who is driving or see the license plate. The Murder of Garrett Phillips: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know, Copyright 2023 Heavy, Inc. All rights reserved. Garrett was described as always being a happy kid, who always had a smile on his face. M3GAN Is Finally Available To Stream After The Kids Go To Bed, 'Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio' Puts A Dark Twist On The Classic Disney Tale, 'Puss In Boots: The Last Wish' Is So Fun, But Gets Way Darker Than You Expect, Everything You Need To Know To Watch 'Puss In Boots: The Last Wish', What Parents Are Talking About Delivered Straight To Your Inbox, By subscribing to this BDG newsletter, you agree to our. ", So far, this new lead doesnt seem to count as "something different. They couldnt break down the door, so they got the manager to unlock the door, which was locked from the inside. Since then, St. Lawrence County law enforcement has been unable to piece together the facts surrounding this tragedy and bring . Shanna testified that Hillary was home with her at the . he was with his girlfriend til 11pm (his girlfriends mom confirmed this). Release Date (Streaming): Trainum has an extensive background workingon cases himself. Two years after the slaying, Garretts mothers ex-boyfriend, Oral Nick Hillary, was arrested, tried for the murder and acquitted. The issues around race and policing and prosecutorial misconduct have been huge issues across our nation. The night that her son died, she had no idea what had happened. This case is currently still unsolved after a not guilty verdict. Garrett Phillips was a 12 year old boy who lived with his mom, Tandy and brother, Aaron, in Potsdam, New York. Soon afterwards, a neighbor in Garretts apartment building heard strange noises and called 911. You know, outlandish thoughts like, 'Maybe Garrett fell out the window and made his way back up here and died,' or an accident happened in the apartment and one of the kids didn't wanna get caught or in trouble, so he went out the window. North County Public Radio - NPR for the Adirondack North Country, Jennifer Baxtron (front center) of Black Lives Matter in Potsdam and William Bastuk (front right) of It Could Happen To You called on the state Attorney General's office to launch a special investigation into the unsolved Garret Phillips murder from 2011. 2023 Variety Media, LLC. Nick Hillary is the ex-boyfriend of Tandy Cyrus. There are no clues as to who killed Garrett. Whatever you might say about the film and how it portrays the justice system and Nick Hillary, my hope is that it also reflects the pain of the loss of this family and the gaping hole it left in their lives, Garbus says. The lawn signs of a grinning 12-year-old boy demanding Justice for Garrett remain scattered around the town. "The district attorneys office, the police, and the sheriffs department refuse to get to the bottom of things and basically have swept this investigation under the rug.". The next part of the investigation was from a surveillance camera. He was 12. Hillary was confused, especially because Jones was not in his deputy uniform and he wasn't sure if Jones was there in an official capacity or not. Its no secret how police usually do their work. Vogel called the police to tell them what shed heard, and police arrived at the apartment less than ten minutes later. He was interviewed in the episode, but he mainly talked shit about Nick. They're calling for the state Attorney General. Advocates say raise it first, DEC says 2022 tied for the safest hunting season on record, Governor Kathy Hochul Releases New York State Budget, New York redistricting commission to hold final public hearings this week, New York unlikely to have a new chief judge until later this spring, Adirondack Council leader to step down later this year, Stefanik opens district office in Rensselaer County Government building, Budget watchdog says NY should plan for an upcoming "fiscal cliff", Community Advisory Board (NCPR Executive Council). And yet, in that security video of Garrett on his skateboard, wasn't that Nick driving his Honda CRV though the high school parking lot just after Garrett skated by? He was read his rights. In a complaint filed to the county attorney's office, Hillary claimed that Jones "trailed [him] home in his truck" in September 2010, then knocked on his door to ask him about his "romantic relationship with a certain individual." "There is obviously no resolution to Garrett Phillips murder," Pasqua said at the time. Being a father and having known this young man I would hope the objective is to pursue the killer and do the right thing by Garrett Phillips.". Movie Info. When 12-year-old Garrett Phillips was murdered in 2011, suspicion turned to soccer coach Oral "Nick" Hillary. There is only one door to the apartment. Read Next: WGAs David Young Bows Out of Negotiations Due to Medical Leave, Bridget Everetts Comedy Can Be Blue on Stage But Somebody Somewhere Leans Into the Tender Moments, Inside the Naomi-Verse With Ava DuVernay and Kaci Walfall, Woody Harrelson Slams COVID Set Protocols as 'Nonsense,' Urges Hollywood to 'Stop' Forcing 'Vaccination': Thats 'Not a Free Country', Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania Writer Surprised by Terrible Reviews: I Was in a Low Spot and Really Sad About It, Super Mario Bros. Movie Is Releasing Two Days Early, 'Perfect Match' Star Joey Sasso on Running Around Panama to Find an Engagement Ring, How Much It Cost and What Viewers Didnt See, Michael B. Jordan Meets Reporter at 'Creed III' Premiere Who 'Teased Him all the Time' in High School: 'I Was the Corny Kid, Right? The latest events in the case come as Oral "Nick" Hillary, who was found not guilty of the murder, is suing Potsdam and St. Lawrence County police, claiming he was unfairly accused because he is Black. According to North Country Now, that includes civil actions filed against DA Rain and Jones. Garbus credits the dogged local reporters who wouldnt let up on the case for bringing it to the larger attention, including her own. 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