Settlement reached after trooper kills teen
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A tentative settlement agreement has been reached between West Virginia State Police and the parents of an unarmed teenager who was fatally shot by a trooper following a prank.
The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports a proposed agreement was reached last week between state police and the family of 18-year-old Timothy Hill. The lawsuit was scheduled to go to trial this week.
Judge Jennifer Bailey still needs to approve the settlement. The details have not yet been released.
Senior Trooper B.D. Gillespie shot Hill in June 2014 following a struggle in Mercer County.
Court records say the shooting occurred after Gillespie’s wife discovered underwear on his police cruiser and saw some males in their driveway. Gillespie says Hill reached for the trooper’s gun during the ensuing struggle, prompting the shooting.