By Chris Pugh
cleveland.com
HAMILTON COUNTY, Ohio — An Ohio father was convicted of murder after prosecutors said he intentionally struck and killed a sheriff’s deputy with his car hours after watching police video showing the fatal shooting of his teenage son. Rodney Hinton Jr. was also convicted of reckless homicide and felonious assault in the May 2025 death of Hamilton County Deputy Larry Henderson, WCPO said.
Jurors returned the verdict Friday after more than two days of deliberations. They rejected Hinton’s not guilty by reason of insanity defense. However, they did not convict him of aggravated murder, instead finding him guilty of lesser reckless homicide charges on those counts, local12.com said.
The case began with the death of Hinton’s 18-year-old son, Ryan Hinton. Cincinnati police fatally shot Ryan on May 1, 2025, while officers were investigating a reported stolen vehicle. Police said Ryan had a gun. The officer who fired the shots was not charged, usnews.com reported.
Hours after Hinton viewed police body-camera footage of his son’s shooting the next day, his car struck Henderson, who was directing traffic near the University of Cincinnati during graduation activities. Henderson had retired from the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office months earlier but continued working special assignments.
Hinton’s mental health became a major issue during the trial. His lawyer, Clyde Bennett II, argued that Hinton suffered from serious mental illness and could not understand that his actions were wrong, WVXU noted. Prosecutors argued that Hinton was grieving but still knew right from wrong and deliberately drove toward Henderson.
Hinton is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 16 at 9 a.m. His defense lawyer said he plans to appeal the conviction, WLWT said.
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