Pachino Hill gets 30 days for probation violation
UPDATED: Pachino Hill walked out of the Scott County Courthouse on Friday afternoon after a sometimes-tearful hearing that could have sent him to prison for more than two years.
Instead, Hill will report to jail a week from today to serve 30 days for violating the terms of his probation. He is accused of hitting another person with a metal pipe during a large fight May 4 at the LaQuinta Inn in Davenport, and he pleaded guilty to having an open container in a car in April.
The incidents came after a judge sentenced him in March to a term of probation that included a requirement he attend eight consecutive weeks of church, as well as a counseling program at that church, Third Missionary Baptist in Davenport.
He attended church. He achieved a “major accomplishment” by landing a job, his attorney Brenda Drew-Peeples said during a plea to keep Hill out of custody that resulted in tears from Hill as he listened.
And he is sorry, Drew-Peeples said.
Hill denied hitting anyone with the pipe and a direct role in having an open container in a car, but he acknowledged he should not have placed himself in a position to be in trouble.
“We beg the court not to send him to prison,” Drew-Peeples said.
Hill’s mom, Denise Hill, also pleaded with Scott County Associate District Judge Christine Dalton not place him into custody.
“I’ve seen a change in my son’s life,” she said. “I’ve seen the glow that the Lord has put on him.”
Her son, she said, was “so happy” to get a job.
Scott County Attorney Mike Walton asked that Hill’s probation be revoked. Hill has had the two criminal charges filed against him, has not made any payment toward fines and has not completed any community service requirements on the two separate incidents he is on probation for, Walton said.
Walton put Bryan Butt, a Davenport police officer who tackled Hill after he saw him hit another person in a brawling crowd with a metal object, on the stand to testify.
“Mr. Hill owes a debt to society, and it’s time he pays that debt,” Walton said.
Dalton called the probation infractions “minor.”
“You may be saying it, you may be starting to act it,” Dalton told Hill of his efforts to turn his life around. However, she said, “it’s all or nothing.”
Dalton could have sent Hill to prison for two years and eight months. Instead, she opted to send him to county jail for 30 days, giving him a week to get his affairs in order. The 30-day sentence is actually for a July 2007 driving-while-barred conviction.
On the charge for which he was sentenced to church, he remains on probation, Dalton ruled. The charges were the result of a police chase from Rock Island to Davenport in October. He also faces charges in connection with the case in Rock Island County. That case is set for trial June 2.
Hill approached the bench to shake Dalton’s hand after the hearing was over.
Hill was charged when he was 14 with first-degree murder in the shooting death of Lawrence Brown Johnson. He was accused of giving the gun used in the shooting to Clyde Edwards Jr. Hill pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and terrorism and was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
In December 2002, Hill was one of three men charged with attempted murder for allegedly shooting at a Davenport police officer. One of those bullets missed the head of the Cpl. Dennis Colclasure by six inches, police investigators said.
A lack of evidence caused Scott County prosecutors to drop those charges. Hill was convicted of possessing a firearm as a felon in connection with that incident, but a judge later ruled the evidence insufficient to charge him with any offense and dismissed the case.
In October 2004, Hill was arrested on charges of helping Bryan Mitchell of Davenport leave the area of the fatal shooting of Grayling Church, 20, of Davenport. He also was accused of concealing the weapon and keeping witnesses from giving statements. He was found not guilty of that charge.
In March 2006, Hill was charged with attempted murder in the shooting of a 28-year-old man in the thigh. He pleaded guilty to assault resulting in bodily injury and was sentenced to one year probation and a $250 fine.
He was charged with child endangerment in April 2006, a drug charge in July 2006 and a domestic assault charge in August 2006. That charge prompted a police search because he fled after hitting a former girlfriend in the forehead with a bottle and slashing two tires on her car.
He received probation for the child endangerment and drug charges. The domestic assault case was dismissed.
In July 2007, he led police on a chase during a traffic enforcement effort on the Centennial Bridge. He pleaded guilty to driving while barred and received probation. It is this charge he will serve the 30 days on.
Ann McGlynn can be contacted at (563) 383-2336 or amcglynn@qctimes.com.