Justice is served – Community reacts to Cpl. Keith Heacook’s murder trial outcome

GEORGETOWN, Del. – It’s been more than two years since Delmar Police Corporal Keith Heacook was brutally murdered. Today, Randon Wilkerson, the suspect charged in his murder, finally stood trial and was convicted in less than 90 minutes.

Wilkerson was found guilty on all 16 counts, including first degree murder and over a dozen other related charges.

“Justice has been served and he’s hopefully going to get the life imprisonment that he deserves,” explained Anita Feaster, Cpl. Heacook’s sister who was in the courtroom along with other family and friends. “He did his job and that was something that he loved. He ran into danger, not run away from it.”

That was the sentiment shared by many who attended Monday’s trial that took place in Superior Court in Georgetown, Delaware. The trial began with the honorable Judge Craig Karsnitz sharing the exhibits of evidence agreed upon prior by both the prosecution and defense.

The first exhibit was 17 minutes of body cam footage that was played in the court in all of its entirety. It showed officers arriving to the home on Buckingham Drive where they found Cpl. Heacook lying lifeless. The responding officer approached the front door, which was left open, where he found Cpl. Heacook’s body face down in the living room lying in a pool of blood.

Cpl. Heacook’s family and friends could be heard crying in the courtroom as the footage played on, showing the responding officer dragging Cpl. Heacook’s body out of the house and into the front yard where he started CPR. As other officers arrived, they too took turns trying to resuscitate Cpl. Heacook.

Wilkerson could be seen in the courtroom watching the footage intermittently, turning away periodically and shaking his head.

As the footage went on, inside the house, were several people, some of whom were Wilkerson’s roommates. They were all ordered out of the home by police and onto the front lawn face down as life-saving efforts continued on Cpl. Heacook.

“Come on Heacook, come on man,” officers could be heard shouting as they tried to save the Corporal’s life.

Wilkerson was ultimately apprehended nearby and was detained in a patrol car. Officers could be heard questioning him in the body cam footage, asking “what happened to the officer?” to which he replied “I have no idea.”

During Wilkerson’s rampage, court documents and evidence state that, before he was apprehended, he went across the street to the home of Steve and Judy Franklin, two senior citizens who heard a knock at their back door.

The Franklins recalled hearing a man’s voice outside the door, according to exhibit testimony, saying “I live across the street and a kid is being raped. I was told you could help.” They decided to let him in, a choice that would result in both of them being severely injured.

Wilkerson punched 76-year-old Steve Franklin to the ground and began beating him in the head with a glass angel figurine, saying “I’m going to kill you.” He then began beating 73-year-old Judy Franklin to the point where she was left with two broken eye sockets. When he was done there, Wilkerson simply walked out of the front door.

During the investigation, law enforcement officials discovered blood all over the living room, including on Cpl. Heacook’s baton, flashlight, note pad, and a 20 lb dumbbell. DNA evidence shows that both Cpl. Heacook and Wilkerson’s blood were found on the dumbbell. The autopsy conducted on Cpl. Heacook listed his cause of death as the result of head injuries.

After Wilkerson was arrested, while detained at the station, he was heard saying “I beat the cop in the head, I smashed his head.” Further exhibit testimony stated that he went on to say “I killed him. I killed that [expletive]. I smashed him over the head with the weight. I went across the street and they said I did it.”

A toxicology report showed prior to the murder, Wilkerson had methamphetamine, cocaine, fentanyl, and marijuana in his system. Exhibit testimony from a witness who was in the house the night of the incident stated that they helped Wilkerson shoot meth into his arm, and that at one point during his rampage he said “it’s not me, it’s the meth.”

“All the witness statements indicated they had seen him using methamphetamine,” explained David Hume, a DOJ prosecutor. “He even said himself ‘it’s not me, it’s the meth.'”

Superior Court Judge Craig Karsnitz said he struggled with the decision to play the video because of its graphic nature, but believed it was necessary as it quote: “provides significant context.” Attorney General Kathy Jennings was in attendance for the trail and agreed.

“This footage was as brutal as any I have ever seen,” Attorney General Jennings told 47 ABC outside the courthouse. “It just tells everyone in that courtroom what a hero Cpl. Heacook was and how much he put himself in danger to do his duty above all else.”

Also turning out for the trial was Delmar Police Chief Ivan Barkley who spoke at a press conference held by the Attorney General following the verdict. He held back tears as he remembered Cpl. Heacook.

“Being a husband, being a father, he talked about his time with his son, all the time,” Chief Barkley said. “In one of our last conversations, which actually was the Friday before this incident, he talked about his desire to retire after 22 years and take a position with Salisbury University so he could get an education for his son.”

Doug Marshall, a Delmar resident and community servant who founded Heacook Fest to honor Cpl. Heacook’s memory and sacrifice, sat alongside the family in the courtroom. He tells us he was there to see the aftermath of what happened that night as he didn’t live far from where the incident occurred, was up late, and decided to take a drive. Reliving that night and what he saw while watching the body cam footage was not easy for him.

“I watched that video closely,” Marshall said. “I was there, one of the first people there, and I wasn’t right up on Keith of course, but it’s hard to hold back emotion when you see the brutality that someone is willing to inflict on another human being, and that was intentional, he intentionally killed that man.”

Also in attendance for the trial was Wicomico County Sherriff Mike Lewis, whose agency responded the night of the incident. It wasn’t long ago that one of their own, Cpl. Glenn Hilliard, was also killed in the line of duty. Sheriff Lewis had strong words surrounding both situations.

“This is a trend that we’re seeing across the country today,” Sheriff Lewis said. “It’s heartbreaking, but it’s a reality of what men and women in law enforcement face every single day when we’re out here on the street.”

Judge Karsnitz praised the courage of the responding officers, saying in Cpl. Heacook’s last moments he was there with people who cared.

Ahead of his sentencing, Attorney General Jenning’s vowed Wilkerson will never again see freedom: “he will serve, let me repeat this, he WILL serve the rest of his natural life in prison.”

Wilkerson’s sentencing is set for December 8th following a pre-sentencing investigation.