For years, one of the loudest voices demanding justice for Garrett Phillips belonged to his uncle. But hes also said recent new leads have gone nowhere. Murray and another officer, Gary Snell (who Garbus notes declined to be interviewed for the doc), interrogated Hillary after conducting a joint interview with Phillips mother Tandy and John Jones, who was not only her ex-boyfriend but also a sheriffs deputy at the time of the crime, and later briefly brought under suspicion because he was seen on tape by Phillips just before the murder. "Thats not gonna change.". After Garrett is seen turning towards his house, the car is seen following him. He was interviewed in the episode, but he mainly talked shit about Nick. But Hillary was black and Jones was white, and Hillary was focused on as a suspect with much more intensity. One DA declined to pursue an indictment and was eventually voted out of office. Easily explained." Though the crime happened almost five years ago, the whodunit of it all has consumed this quiet area. But the verdict came down as not guilty, and Tandy never ended up going on the record with Garbus. Hillary was considered a suspect because he was an ex-boyfriend of the boy's mother. Nick tried to leave for work, and the police blocked the door. The DNA was ruled immiscible, and the case was based on circumstantial evidence. #AD - Use this link for a 7-day free trial - http://bit.ly/23sh00652In today's video I discuss the case of Garrett Phillips as well as the documentary 'Who k. He talked a lot about accountability, but with guys rarely getting benched, demoted or cut, it was just talk. Garrett was described as always being a happy kid, who always had a smile on his face. Talking on Build, ahead of the series which dropped onto Sky Crime earlier this month, Hillary spoke about his life after the case. But at around 5 p.m., when the murder is estimated to have occurred, no one saw anyone jump or flee from the building. The judge took it all in and after about a week of both sides summing up their arguments, he came back with a verdict. By the time Liz Garbus's 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. As le His career, its Nick interrupted: Its gone., Continuing her spiel, Liz said: His family have suffered great trauma and Nicks financial situation is not what it was before its not a happy ending.. He had minutes left to live. He was 12. Dismiss. HBO. She had also been in a relationship with a police officer named John Jones at the time. At least one of them had talked to police back in 2011, and their story did not add up. For years, no one was named in Phillips death. We were fascinated by the legal intricacies, the nuances of the case, and picturesque Potsdam, a river town so far upstate New York the closest big city is in Canada. HE HAD A KEY!!! That's a remarkable jump from the window.". "We weren't thinking it was a homicide immediately, but something had happened. After the schoolboys body was found suffocated and strangled, all fingers pointed to Nick as the murderer. 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. If Carranza, the dude changing a tire at 100 Market, saw a black man in the window, could it have been Amos? The police asked him why he turned the opposite way. The lead does not involve Nick Hillary, the person who was found not guilty of Garrett Phillips' murder. Nick is targeted. There is only one door to the apartment. 2023 BDG Media, Inc. All rights reserved. She added Nick warned her, "If I didn't get Garrett under control or get him on a more strict schedule, then when he got older I wasn't gonna be able to control him. Director Jesse Quackenbush, a man from Albany, New York who graduated from the University of Houston Law School in 1987 and, that year, moved to Amarillo, made the documentary The Last Word which argues that Garrett was in fact innocent of the crime. In their ruling, a state disciplinary panel wrote that Rain's handling of the Garrett Phillips case was one of several ethical issues that contributedto her punishment. He said: Its important to note I think that the cops may have been somewhat intellectually challenged, but the district attorney that prosecuted this case has been a district attorney for three decades, thats thirty years in New York. After first reading about the case in a New York Times article, Garbus recalls being struck by the thematic issues and concerns that, I think, are ones that spoke to larger systemic problems. Specifically what caught her attention was that the local polices focus was on one of Phillips mothers ex-boyfriends, a Jamaican American man who was well-known around town as a soccer coach, despite the fact that he had an alibi and that there had been rumblings of other possible suspects early on. Rain, who was elected on her promise to crack Garretts case, saw her law license suspended for two years for misconduct, which included hiding potentially exculpatory evidence from the coachs defense team. That trial could begin later this fall. On the last day of his life, he went home after school and was home alone where he should have been safe, but apparently wasnt. — -- It was Oct. 24, 2011, when 12-year-old Garrett Phillips was found strangled to death inside his home in Potsdam, New York, a small town near the Canadian border. The group wrote a letter to DA Pasqua seeking an independent prosecutor two weeks ago. Who Killed Garrett Phillips? airs July 23 and 24 on HBO. I have so many questions about the ex-boyfriend, John Jones. About his hitch in the U.S. Army. We need to start a true dialogue about how can we bring forth changes, he explained. Director: Liz Garbus. The neighbors knocked on the door, and heard what sounded like the door being locked and latched. His mother's ex-boyfriend, Nick Hillary, was found not guilty of the murder just over two years ago in a. On May 14, 2014, Nick was arrested and charged with second degree murder. POTSDAM Nearly nine years after Garrett J. Phillips was strangled to death in his Potsdam home, the case remains open and no one has been convicted in connection to the 12-year-old's murder. This led to Hillarys arrest, which satisfied Brian Phillips, who still passionately professes his belief that Hillary is guilty in Garbus doc. But going forward, it looks like industry-shifting life sciences 2023 Variety Media, LLC. Ms. The DA says an investigation is ongoing, but its hard to know if police are taking the new information seriously. This video proves nothing. On September 21, Hillarys daughter, Shanna-Kay, took the stand to defend her father. The police had a theory about the motivation, a story about obsessive love gone wrong. All Rights Reserved. The duo were joined by lawyer Mani Tafari, who also shared his view on the case. The district attorney, Mary Rain, teared up at a post-verdict press conference, and said Tandy told her, I know you guys tried., But Nicks attorney Earl Ward, speaking to a group of press outside the courthouse, reiterated what the defense team maintained all along: Nick Hillary is an innocent man., Nick spent that afternoon surrounded by a group of family, supporters and former soccer teammates. 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. As least, thats what many may hope after the new St. Lawrence County district attorney admitted a new tip earlier this spring. And they havent been in touch with Garrett Phillips family. Police said they tested every person with access to the apartment, including residents and maintenance staff. Police have estimated that Garretts murder took place around 5pm neighbors called the police to complain of hearing strange noises coming from his apartment at 5:07pm. It was two days after 12 year-old Garrett Phillips was found strangled to death in his home in Potsdam. When a new prosecutor took office, St. Lawrence County district attorney Gary Pasqua, he said the case remains open because no one was convicted. 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.. Her father said Ill be right back through the door, and when she got out of the shower 20 minutes later, her father was home. They couldnt break down the door, so they got the manager to unlock the door, which was locked from the inside. Privacy Policy. Sky Crime launched the documentary Who Killed Garrett Phillips? Despite having only circumstantial evidence, the D.A. Despite housing crisis, there's pushback against development, Rochester man dies in snowmobile crash on the Tug Hill, Hochul wants to tie the minimum wage to inflation. How are police handling new leads in the Garrett Phillips case? Tonight, ABC News and Dateline will both investigate the 2011 murder of Garrett Phillips. "It still is. Again, this doesnt really prove anything. 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. In 2011, Garrett Phillips, who was just 12-years-old, was killed in his upstate New York home. Nick told the police that he was with his assistant coach, a man named Ian at the time of the murder. He has maintained his innocence since day one telling Elizabeth Vargas, I have absolutely nothing to do with what has happened to Garrett. Filling the benches behind, were foursquare supporters of Hillary across the aisle from Tandy's extended family. Since then, St. Lawrence County law enforcement has been unable to piece together the facts surrounding this tragedy and bring . He was 12. Original Language: English. 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. Phillips's final hours. 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. 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. Could the choke out theory be true. The first afternoon, of many, spent rebuilding his life. Despite housing crisis, there's pushback against development, Rochester man dies in snowmobile crash on the Tug Hill, Hochul wants to tie the minimum wage to inflation. Hillary claims Potsdam and St. Lawrence County law enforcement violated his civil rights, in part because hes Black. Nick is innocent, and cannot be retried. First, why the actual eff was he allowed to be in the interrogation room with Tandy? A St. Lawrence County prosecutor says there's a new tip in the Garrett Phillips murder case. When they didnt hear back, they called on state Attorney General Tish James to intervene. They also knocked on the door and said they heard footsteps coming from inside the apartment. On Oct. 24, 2011, a dispatcher in Potsdam, N.Y., got a 911 call from a person reporting suspicious sounds in a neighboring apartment. Again, I saw an abrasion, but it ankle didnt look swollen to me. 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. The coachs daughter Shanna-Kay Hillary testified for her father and said he was in their house at the time of Garretts murder. Police went up the apartment building stairs and into the home, where they found Garrett unconscious and alone inside. The next part of the investigation was from a surveillance camera. She said they were still intimate that night, but she demanded her key back. Who Killed Garrett Phillips? Nick Hillary Found Not Guilty in Murder of 12-Year-Old Garrett Phillips. Garrett lived at the apartment at 100 Market St. with his mother, Tandy Cyrus, and younger brother, Aaron. "But the day of the verdict, something just hit me. Director Liz Garbus is pictured in an undated photo. Tandy and Aaron have since moved out. Bastuk admits theyre just familiarizing the AGs office with the details of the case. In Shanna-Kays cross-examination, the prosecution brought her attention to surveillance footage that showed her walking home at 4:02pm, which would have gotten her home at 4:12pm, and therefore into the shower at 4:22 pm. Dismiss. Phillips was the 12-year-old boy who was fatally Mar 08, 2019 A St. Lawrence County prosecutor says there's a new tip in the Garrett Phillips murder case. 23, with Part 2 following the next night on Jul. And that's an important part of the lawsuit Hillary has since filed against many individuals involved in his case. (Also pictured: Potsdam Village attorney Thomas Mortati.) Jones said he had had a "civil" conversation with Hillary in front of Hillary's home, but Hillary did not categorize it that way. Changes, he explained the DA says an investigation is ongoing, something... Does not involve Nick Hillary found not guilty in Garbus doc belief that is. 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