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Kevin Monahan, age 65, was back in a Washington County courtroom on Tuesday morning, Jan. 16, for the sixth day of his murder trial in the death of 20-year-old Kaylin Gillis.
Monahan’s lead defense attorney, Arthur Frost, asked the judge to declare a mistrial after jurors saw body camera footage from a Washington County Sheriff’s sergeant in which Monahan tells the officer that he's contacted his attorney, CBS 6 reports.
Frost claimed that jurors might interpret that as Monahan admitting guilt, according to the outlet.
The judge denied his request for a mistrial and instructed jurors to not make any unfair inference from the fact that Monahan called his attorney, CBS 6 reports.
Investigators said it was just before 10 p.m. on Saturday, April 15, when Gillis and three others mistakenly turned into Monohan’s driveway in the rural town of Hebron while looking for a friend’s house.
After realizing their mistake, they turned around and were leaving his home when Monahan fired two shots at their vehicle from a 12-gauge shotgun, striking Gillis, according to the Washington County Sheriff’s Office.
The woman’s boyfriend had to drive nearly five miles away from the shooting scene in order to get cell reception and call 911.
Gillis, a 2021 graduate of Schuylerville High School in Saratoga County, was treated at the scene but died from her injuries.
Monahan spent roughly an hour holed up inside his home talking with 911 dispatchers before finally surrendering.
According to deputies, the group of friends never got out of their car and had no interaction with Monahan prior to the shooting.
Frost previously told WNYT that Monahan felt threatened by the car pulling into his driveway and accidentally fired the fatal shot after first firing a warning shot into the air.
Monahan now faces a jury trial after pleading not guilty to the following charges:
- Second-degree murder
- Reckless endangerment
- Tampering with evidence
This continues to be a developing story. Check back to Daily Voice for updates.
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