Uber Murder Or Self-Defense? Trial Starts In Denver
The first-degree murder trial of Michael Hancock, an Uber driver who killed passenger Hyun (Huhn) Kim, began in Denver, Colorado.
Johnna Stuart, Hancock’s lawyer, alleges that Hancock acted in self-defense, after being assaulted by Kim in June 2018.
As an Uber driver, Stuart said Hancock supplemented a modest income from working at a youth group home.
During his opening argument, Stuart detailed how Hancock then asked another driver who stopped at the scene of the altercation to call 911 and urged to get help for Kim. Hancock said he tried not to hurt Kim but that he (Kim) was reaching for his pocket while hitting him.
Prosecution Speaks at Uber Murder Opening Remarks
The opposing argument from the prosecution was alarming. They allege that Hancock had planned to kill Kim. Also, they say Kim was intoxicated from a bar he had been at earlier in the evening. When he left the bar, Kim requested an Uber ride. Hancock was the driver. Uber records show that Hancock’s car kept running for approximately 70 miles before the shooting happened by an on-ramp to I-25.
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Chief Deputy District Attorney Philip Reinert said Hancock shot at Kim 10 times from his semi-automatic handgun, striking Kim at least five times. He says Kim’s death was not done in self-defense and urged jurors to, “use their common sense.”
Photographs taken by the police found bruises on Hancock’s eyebrow and Kim’s right hand.
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