The father of Kaylin Gillis, a 20-year-old Upstate woman who was shot and killed after accidentally driving into the wrong driveway, has expressed “deep relief” after her attacker was found guilty, saying “justice has finally been served.” said.
Kevin Monahan, 66, was found guilty of second-degree murder on Tuesday after a two-week trial in Gillis' death, with the jury deliberating for less than an hour.
Her father, Andrew Gillis, took to Facebook to thank the community, authorities and court system.
“Thank you to everyone who has reached out to my family and me over the past nine months following the untimely passing of our beloved daughter Kaylin.” Gillis wrote.
“While there will never be complete closure for the events of that fateful day, we feel that justice has prevailed with the guilty verdicts on all charges announced earlier today,” he said. I wrote this by quoting the courts, police agencies, and family members. We thank our members for their work and support.
“We would trade anything to bring Kaylin back, but this was the best outcome, except for her still being with us.
“Kaelynn got justice. Lots of love to everyone!” Gillis wrote.
“The prosecution team's meticulous attention to detail, relentless pursuit of justice, and incredible support for our family has been truly remarkable,” he continued.
“Their expertise and unwavering commitment to upholding the law helped secure this guilty verdict. …We hope that this outcome will protect the lives of others considering committing such heinous acts.” “We hope it will act as a deterrent to others and bring a sense of closure to other families who have experienced similar tragedies,” the grieving father added.
Gillis and his friends were looking for another home on April 15 when their car accidentally ended up in Monaghan's rural driveway in Hebron.
Monahan went onto his porch with a 12-gauge shotgun and fired two shots into the SUV, hitting Gillis in the neck as he was sitting in the passenger seat.
Her boyfriend was behind the wheel and was pulling out of Monaghan's driveway when the homeowner opened fire.
During the trial, Monahan argued that the second shot was due to a malfunction in the gun and that he did not intend to fire the fatal shot.
“I didn't mean to fire the second shot…the gun went off,” he said, adding that when Gillis pulled over, he thought his home was “under siege” by a caravan of looters and was trying to scare them. He claimed to have fired a warning shot. off.
He then claimed he tripped over a nail protruding from the deck and dropped his gun, causing it to go off and hit Gillis.
But prosecutors presented a completely different picture of the man, with arresting officers describing him as having “zero remorse” for what he had done and saying he “acted out of anger.” .
“That's all you can infer from shooting people within 90 seconds of entering the premises,” Assistant Prosecutor Christian Morris said in closing arguments.
