INDIANAPOLIS — The trial began Tuesday for a man accused of shooting an IMPD officer in the neck two years ago.
Mylik Hill is acting as his own attorney as he defends himself on charges of attempted murder and other crimes in the shooting that wounded Officer Thomas Mangan in February 2022.
"The defendant was in his vehicle minding his own business when force was used on him," Hill told jurors during an opening statement. "No crime was committed here."
Prosecutors say Hill was running from officers when Mangan caught up and started to tackle him in the backyard of a home in Fountain Square on Feb. 27, 2022.
Hill pulled a handgun and fired, Marion County Deputy Prosecutor Amy Jacobson told the jury. One round struck Mangan in the neck.
"Officer Mangan is running back towards him (Sgt. Matthew Cook)," Jacobson said. "He can’t talk. He’s smoking. He literally looks like he's smoking."
Cook, one of the officers on the scene that night, testified that he heard gunshots before seeing Mangan. Smoke was coming from somewhere on Mangan's body, Cook said.
"Then I see a hole in his throat and I realize he had been shot," Cook said.
Police body camera video played in court showed a wounded Mangan running in the darkened street as his police radio explodes and bursts into flames.
Hill denies shooting Mangan. He is facing trial before Superior Court Judge Angela Davis on charges of attempted murder, resisting law enforcement and possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon.
Prosecutors say Hill shot Mangan in the neck just as the officer was about to catch him. A second officer returned fire, striking Hill multiple times. Police captured Hill in the 900 block of Dawson Street.
Mangan was seriously injured. He is expected to testify on Wednesday. The trial is expected to conclude by Friday.
READ | Officer Mangan released from hospital
Contact WRTV reporter Vic Ryckaert at victor.ryckaert@wrtv.com or on X/Twitter: @vicryc.
