SALISBURY, Md. - Austin Davidson, convicted of the 2022 murder of Corporal Glenn Hilliard, was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole with 66 additional years Thursday.
The sentence comes more than a year since Davidson shot and killed Cpl. Hilliard and was handed down by Wicomico County Circuit Court Judge S. James Sarbanes this morning.
Davidson, 22, was previously found guilty on all counts during the murder trial this May, including first and second degree murder and various weapons charges.
With the death penalty abolished in Maryland, prosecutors sought the maximum sentence of life without the possibility of parole, and today were successful in obtaining it.
Hilliard’s widow, Tashica, was also given the opportunity to read a victim impact statement to Davidson during the sentencing. Hilliard’s mother gave one as well.
Speaking directly to Davidson and fighting back tears, Tashica said "I wish I could feel sorry for you" and related Glenn Hilliard's upbringing in foster care to Davidson's.
Tashica made the point that while Glenn also had a tough upbringing, he made the choice to do good.
In an emotional moment, Tashica Hilliard told Davidson that her daughter will not have a "daddy" to see her off to college or to walk her down the aisle one day.
Glenn Hilliard's mother Karen Hilliard Johnson, who was not in the courtroom during the trial told Davidson she is a "proud mother" of Glenn Hilliard.
Hilliard Johnson expressed to Davidson that on June 12, 2022, Davidson did not just end Glenn's life, but also his own.
In a stunning moment, against his counsel's advice, Davidson chose to respond to the victim impact statements.
He turned to the Hilliard family, fighting back tears, and said "I'm sorry for your son, your husband, your children's father. What I did was selfish," he said.
Davidson continued "I didn't think about anything but the situation I'm in. I wish I could take it back."
But the eleventh hour remorse did not prove enough for Davidson, as the judge echoed many of the sentiments expressed by the defense and the victims during his sentencing.
Judge Sarbanes said regarding Davidson "I don't dispute that he has remorse, I don't understand how it can be genuine with his actions after the incident," referencing Davidson's bragging about murdering Hilliard and threats to law enforcement officers during his incarceration.
Just prior to sentencing, Davidson's defense noted his difficult upbringing and said a sentence of life without parole would never afford him the opportunity for rehabilitation.
His public defender Michelle Moodispaw said the judge should consider a sentence of life "not that he's earned it but because one day maybe he will," she said.
On June 12, 2022, in Pittsville, Corporal Hilliard pursued Davidson in an attempt to arrest the wanted felon on multiple warrants. During the pursuit, Davidson turned and shot Hilliard with an illegally possessed gun, killing him. Autopsy photos revealed during Davidson’s trial showed gunshot wounds to Corporal Hilliard’s head.
Hilliard, of Berlin, was 41 and a 16-year veteran of the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Department.
