ATLANTA — Two officers accused of murdering a man inside his girlfriend’s apartment say they are innocent.
Jamarion Robinson, 26, was shot dozens of times inside his girlfriend’s apartment in 2016. Robinson’s mother, Monteria Robinson, was in court when Kristopher Hutchens and Eric Heinze entered not guilty pleas in a Fulton County courtroom.
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“Eventually I knew I would be here,” Monteria Robinson said after court. “I didn’t expect for it to take this long.”
Hutchens and Heinze were on a Zoom call when they entered not guilty pleas in the 2016 shooting death of Robinson. Monteria Robinson said they were in court because of her persistent pursuit of charges in this case.
“You know I always stated that my goal was to get them out of a blue uniform and into an orange jumpsuit, so you know we are headed in that direction,” she said.
The officers face charges of felony murder, aggravated assault, burglary, making false statements and violation of oath by a public officer. They were a part of a U.S. Marshal’s Fugitive Task Force that attempted to arrest Robinson at his girlfriend’s East Point apartment on outstanding warrants.
Police said Robinson pointed a gun at them days before the shooting. Police said Robinson was also wanted out of Gwinnett County on an arson charge.
Officers said Robinson had a gun and refused to put it down. Police initially said he fired his weapon at them. Task force members opened fire, hitting him 59 times, with 17 shots exiting his body, according to his mother.
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Monteria Robinson hired investigators and experts to get to the bottom of what happened. She aggressively pushed for the officers’ arrest.
“I gotta fight for Jamarion Robinson. I always say that I am his voice,” she said.
She was happy the officers were in court and the judge set a trial date.
“Our expectation or our outcome is a conviction,” she said.
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The judge set a trial date for September, but that might not happen since the officers are trying to get the case moved to federal court. They both are out on $50,000 bond each.
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