Friends and relatives of 20-year-old Kaylin Gillis harassed her killer as he was escorted out of court to begin serving a 25-year prison sentence.
Kevin Monahan, 66, was found guilty Friday of first-degree murder, reckless endangerment and tampering with physical evidence following a two-week trial in January.
Monahan, a Hebron native, fatally shot Gillis after the SUV she was riding in accidentally pulled into his rural driveway in Upstate New York last April.
The decision came after a series of heartbreaking emotional impact statements from Gillis’ father, her boyfriend Blake Walsh, who was driving, and girlfriend Alexandra Whiting, who was another passenger on the fateful night.
The courtroom, which was packed with people wearing shirts and sweaters in memory of Gillis, rejoiced as Monahan was escorted out of the courtroom after being sentenced to 25 years behind bars.
Friends and relatives of 20-year-old Kaylin Gillis harassed her killer Kevin Monahan (pictured) as he was escorted out of court to begin serving a 25-year prison sentence
Monahan is on trial for the April 2023 fatal shooting of 20-year-old Kaylin Gillis, who was shot in the neck after a car she was riding in accidentally drove into the gunman’s driveway
Gillis (right) was in the car with her boyfriend and two friends when they became lost on Monahan’s winding dirt road. He says he will “never be able to forgive” Monahan for killing her
Gillis’ family and friends shouted “Bye Kevin,” “you coward” and “justice has been done” as he was marched out in handcuffs.
The defense asked for leniency. Monahan declined an opportunity to speak.
“I think it’s important for people to know that it’s not okay to shoot people and have them killed for turning out of your driveway,” Judge Adam Michelini said.
Beyond the broader deterrent effect, Michelini said it is important that Monahan remains behind bars rather than being free to harm more people.
On the night of Gillis’ death, the group of friends had realized their mistake and turned around when Monahan fired a second shot, hitting Gillis in the neck as she sat in the front passenger seat of an SUV driven by her friend .
Monahan insisted the fatal shot was an accident and that the shotgun was defective. He also said he believed the house about 40 miles north of Albany was under “siege” by intruders, and said he came outside to fire a warning shot in an attempt to scare the group away while his wife hidden inside.
Prosecutors argued that Monahan was motivated by an irrational anger toward offenders.
A jury deliberated for less than two hours before returning guilty verdicts against Monahan in January on charges of murder, reckless endangerment and tampering with physical evidence.
Gilis’ father previously opened up about his grief over the sudden loss of his daughter, saying he hopes Monahan ‘dies in prison’
A NYS police officer holds Kevin Monahan’s shotgun during summonses in Monahan’s murder case
Kaylin Gillis’ father, Andrew, addressed the media after Monahan’s first court appearance in April, where he said he hoped the shooter “dies in jail.”
According to Zillow, Kevin Monahan’s house was built in 2004 and is estimated to cost $310,000. It is only accessible via a dirt road.
Gillis’ father, Andrew Gillis, has described his daughter as someone who loved animals and dreamed of becoming a marine biologist or veterinarian.
‘Every day we wake up to the harsh reality that she is gone. We will never see her beautiful face or hear her laughter,” Gillis said in court Friday before Monahan’s sentence was announced.
Her boyfriend, Blake Walsh, was behind the wheel of the SUV that evening. “I’ll never be able to forgive you,” he told Monahan, who looked on with a stony face.
“You took the life of someone who was never a threat to you, not for a second,” Walsh said.
“Kaylin was a sweet and loving soul. You could be anything you wanted,” he continued. “If it was my decision, you’d be in jail.”
Gillis’ friend Whiting told the killer: ‘Every now and then I feel a little sorry for you. I wonder why you became this way and why, and wonder if you really feel guilty about what you did.”
“You made a decision that changed all of our lives forever, all because you spent three minutes in fear,” she said.