The wife of an Ohio sheriff’s deputy who was allegedly murdered by a man enraged by the death of his son at the hands of another cop is suing the suspect’s family members for fundraising.
Rodney Hinton Jr., 38, is currently in the Clermont County Jail, charged with the murder of retired Hamilton County Sheriff’s Deputy Larry Henderson, 57.
On May 2, Hinton allegedly collided with Henderson while the special deputy was directing traffic for the University of Cincinnati’s commencement ceremony. The day before, Hinton’s son was fatally shot by a Cincinnati cop.
When Hinton’s family used online fundraisers such as GoFundMe and GiveSendGo to crowdfund money for legal bills and family expenses, several Ohio officials and police groups reacted and successfully petitioned to have some of them removed.
Henderson’s widow filed a lawsuit on July 14, claiming that the alleged killer’s family “have campaigned for and collected over $100,000.00 using Rodney Hinton’s public status and notoriety.”
Law&Crime reviewed the lawsuit, which names Hinton and family members as parties. The document acknowledges that, while Ohio law prohibits a suspect or criminal from profiting from their crimes, such as selling their life story for a book, movie, or TV show, there is no provision for crowdfunding. This is commonly referred to as a “Son of Sam” law, after notorious serial killer David Berkowitz, who sold exclusive rights to his story for a profit.
The lawsuit claimed that Hinton’s family members were profiting from his “public status and notoriety gained solely through his criminal act of killing Deputy Henderson,” which the suit described as “a malicious civil conspiracy.” As a result, the lawsuit argued that Hinton’s family members should not be permitted to collect their “ill-gotten gains.”
The lawsuit also holds Hinton responsible for Henderson’s wrongful death as a result of his “deliberate, intentional, and malicious acts” and seeks “all lawful damages.”
The lawsuit requested that any funds raised by Hinton’s family be turned over to Henderson, as well as compensatory and punitive damages.
According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, police groups requested that GoFundMe remove the fundraisers associated with Hinton and his family.
A fundraiser purportedly posted by Hinton’s wife on GiveSendGo went unpublished. According to reports, they were all intended to fund legal services for Hinton and his family.
Hinton’s defense attorney claimed that after police showed him footage of his son, Ryan Hinton, being shot by a Cincinnati police officer, he had a psychotic break. According to his lawyer, the alleged attack on Henderson was motivated by his altered mental state.
