Jury finds man guilty in suburban police officer slaying
Jul 28, 2014, 2:11 PM | Updated: 3:24 pm
PHOENIX — A jury on Monday convicted a man of murder in the 2007 shooting
of a Glendale police officer during a routine traffic stop.
Bryan Wayne Hulsey, 40, was convicted of first-degree murder in the death of
Officer Anthony Holly, 24. Hulsey also was found guilty of attempted
first-degree murder of another officer.
Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
The trial is scheduled to resume Tuesday so the jury can determine whether
there were “aggravating factors” in the case that make Hulsey eligible for a
death sentence.
Hulsey was a passenger in the vehicle that had been pulled over for speeding
and not having a license plate. Holly was there to serve as backup to another
officer who made the traffic stop.
Hulsey exited the vehicle, said, “I’ve got something for you,” and fired two
shots, one of which hit Holly, prosecutors said.
Hulsey’s lawyers have denied he killed Holly and instead alleged that another
officer who had pulled over the vehicle had panicked and unintentionally shot
him.
Prosecutors say Hulsey was upset during the stop and complained that they were
being pulled over for having a cracked windshield.
Authorities say Hulsey got out of the vehicle and started firing, prompting the
officer who made the stop to fire back and strike Hulsey in one of his legs.
Defense attorneys said Holly was unintentionally shot by the other officer
based on the fact that the bullet that killed Holly wasn’t recovered during the
autopsy, though tiny metal fragments remained in his body.