Former friends, ex-girlfriend testify against Austin Davidson in Cpl. Glenn Hilliard murder trial
WICOMICO COUNTY, Md. – The trial of Austin Jacob Allen Davidson entered day four Thursday. Davidson entered the courtroom with his hair down, wearing a white and blue checked long-sleeve button-up shirt and black slacks, with his hands folded behind his back.
Ex-Girlfriend Recounts Tumultuous Relationship
The first witness to take the stand Thursday was Davidson’s ex-girlfriend. 47 ABC WMDT is not publicly identifying her, and will use the pseudonym, Jane, in this article. Defense attorney Archibald McFadden picked up with cross examination, after Jane was questioned by prosecutors Wednesday.
Jane detailed a tumultuous, on-and-off-again relationship between April and November of 2021. She says the pair met on Facebook, and Davidson would live with her intermittently. Jane has two young children, and says she never feared them being harmed by Davidson; the pair were in love with each other, she says.
That changed in November of 2021, says Jane, when she confronted Davidson over his active warrants; she says she did not want her children exposed to Davidson’s behavior, explaining to the jury “I didn’t want anything to do with any of that.”
In prosecutors’ redirect questioning, Jane alleged that Davidson once stabbed an air mattress while her young son was in the same room, which contributed to their break-up.
On June 12th, 2022, Jane says Davidson called her and sent her text messages while he was hiding from police. Police arrived at her home not long after, says Jane, and had her call Davidson to convince him to turn himself in, which he ultimately did.
McFadden asked Jane if Davidson was the type to “overexaggerate” and “bluster.” Jane said he was, adding that she could not tell if Davidson actually intended to take his own life on that night.
Acquaintances Distance Themselves from Davidson
Tyler Wilson of Princess Anne was one of two of Davidson’s acquaintances who took the stand Thursday. He told the jury that he and Davidson were friends for five or six years, and met through a mutual friend. Wilson says Davidson also goes by the nickname “Sleepy.”
Wilson says he let Davidson sleep in a broken down Crown Victoria parked in his driveway for about a month before June 12th, 2022; Davidson had no other place to go, says Wilson. During that time, Wilson says he observed Davidson storing clothing and firearms in the vehicle.
Prosecutors showed the jury a picture of Davidson standing in front of a Crown Victoria, which Wilson identified as his own; in the picture, Davidson is seen looking straight into the camera, chin jutted upwards, with a handgun in one hand, and a rifle in the other, and a stack of $100 bills sticking out of his pocket.
In the Spring of 2022, Wilson told Davidson that he had to pack up and move out of the vehicle. Wilson told the jury that he had found out that Davidson had active warrants against him, and did not want him staying on his property. The pair kept in contact and would occasionally hang out after that, Wilson says.
In another phone call a short time later, Wilson says Davidson told him he “heard helicopters and cops were close by,” as he hid in an RV. Wilson added that Davidson told him he shot Cpl. Hilliard because “he was scared and didn’t want to go back to jail.”
During that time, Collins told the jury, “everybody in the house was very uncomfortable” with Davidson being in the residence. Collins says he observed Davidson brandishing weapons in his home on multiple occasions, including a handgun and rifle. The courtroom was shown a Snapchat video that Collins recorded of Davidson pointing the handgun, with a shining red laser sight attachment, directly at the camera.
Timeline Leading to Cpl. Hilliard’s Death Cleared Up
On June 12th, 2022, Collins told the jury, he learned of Davidson’s active warrants and told him to pack his things. Collins, Davidson, and two other friends traveled to Pittsville Park together, where they stayed for about 45 minutes, before going to another friend’s house, says Collins.
There, Davidson did a load of laundry, and the group returned to the park for about 20 minutes, says Collins. Collins says Davidson then suggested traveling to a dirt road in Willards to shoot, and empty out, the magazine in a rifle. When they did, Collins recorded a video of a shirtless Davidson rapidly firing the rifle in the air, which was shown to the jury.
However, Collins told the jury, Davidson did not want to spend the night alone in the abandoned home. It was then decided that Collins would bring Davidson back to Pittsville Park, where he planned to wait out the night, says Collins. When Davidson was dropped off, Collins says he took a backpack with the handgun inside it with him.
“I just shot and killed a cop, bro. Come get me please.”
Later that evening, Collins says he received a phone call from Davidson. Collins recounted the conversation for the jury:
“I just shot and killed a cop, bro. Come get me please,” Davidson allegedly said.
“Bro, you’re crazy. I’m not coming to get you,” Collins says he replied.
Collins says he was “mind blown” as Davidson said he was running through the woods, and hung up. Davidson allegedly called and sent text messages to Collins multiple times after that, updating him on where he was and what was happening. Collins told a friend to call police, he says.
During cross examination, McFadden asked Collins if he ever reported Davidson’s alleged brandishing of weapons at his home to police. Collins said no. He also asked Collins if he was uncomfortable when he took the videos of Davidson holding and firing the weapons. Collins said he was uncomfortable as he recorded the Snapchat of Davidson pointing the handgun at him, but not so when he recorded Davidson firing the rifle in the woods.
McFadden also asked if Collins had taken any pictures holding the weapons, which he confirmed, and added that he had fired the handgun, himself, before. The line of questioning then turned to how easy it was to turn on the laser sight.
“Laser turns on pretty easy, right?” asked McFadden.
“It’s just a button,” Collins replied.
“Just a tap,” said McFadden.
Davidson’s Alleged Behavior in Jail
A man currently incarcerated, who took a plea deal to testify against Davidson, also took the stand. The man said that he and Davidson shared a cell in Allegany County Detention Center (ACDC) between July and August of 2022.
During that time, the man said Cpl. Hilliard’s death was “about the only thing [Davidson] would talk about.” The man told the jury that Davidson would frequently recount the shooting, matching many of the details that witnesses spoke about earlier in the trial.
The main difference: Davidson allegedly told his cell mate that he had attempted to take Cpl. Hilliard’s service weapon off of his body before running away. However, witnesses claim they never saw Davidson reach down or touch Cpl. Hilliard.
The man also told the jury that Davidson had detailed what kind of handgun and rifle he had with him on that day.
In cross examination, McFadden told the jury about the serious drug and weapon-related charges that the man is currently incarcerated for. He also asked the man if he fully understand the rules of the plea deal.
During cross examination, it was revealed that Muir was the only correctional officer to observe this alleged incident. Muir also told the jury that ACDC correctional officers do not wear body-worn cameras.
DNA on Taurus Handgun Matches Davidson
Tiffany Keener, Maryland State Police Forensic Scientist 3, was named as an expert in the field of forensic serology and DNA in the trial. Serology is the identification of body fluids.
In her testimony, Keener said that three samples did not have enough DNA present on them to do analysis; a taser prong, a magazine, and a pair of sneakers. DNA found on an extended magazine, and the Taurus 9mm handgun allegedly used to kill Cpl. Hilliard, matched Davidson’s sample, says Keener.
Two DNA matches were found on an extended magazine, the rifle had three DNA matches, and one magazine had four DNA matches. Keener says none of the contributors could be identified because of the amount of different DNA present, and a lack of DNA in general.
In cross examination, McFadden asked how it could be determined that DNA came from male contributors. Keener answered that the process of identifying male DNA heavily relies on distinguishing X or Y chromosomes in samples. McFadden also asked Keener to clarify that no DNA contributors were identified on the rifle, which she confirmed.
