Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin today announced that Superior Court Justice Robert D. Krause sentenced Christopher Hall, DOB 1/24/84, formerly of 12 Hollis Street in Providence, to 50 years to serve in prison for the December 14, 2009 incident in which Hall shot at six Providence Police officers during the execution of a search warrant on his home in the city’s West End. Three officers were wounded.
On December 10, 2010 Hall pleaded guilty to six counts of assault with a dangerous weapon on six members of the Providence Police Department’s Narcotics Unit, Detectives John Black, Nicholas Ludovici, Andres Perez, Juan Robles, Carlos Sical and David Schivulli. He also pleaded to three counts of using a firearm when committing a crime of violence, resulting in injury to a police officer engaged in his duty, with one count each applicable to Detectives Black, Sical and Robles, and three counts of using a firearm when committing a crime of violence, with one count each applicable to Detectives Ludovici, Perez and Schivulli. The thirteenth count to which Hall pleaded was possession of over 1 ounce to 1 kilogram of cocaine.
Justice Krause handed down a sentence which totals fifty years to serve; twenty of those years are to be served without the possibility of parole. On each of the counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, the defendant was sentenced to twenty years to serve, on the crime of possessing an ounce to a kilogram of cocaine, the defendant was sentenced to fifty years with thirty years to serve, concurrent to the sentence for assault with a dangerous weapon, the remaining balance of the defendant sentence to be suspended with probation. On the remaining counts of use of a firearm when committing a crime of violence, the defendant was sentenced to twenty years to serve without parole. This sentence is to be served consecutively to the other sentences imposed.
“Each time police officers put on their uniform, they put their life on the line to protect our communities,” said Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin. “Whether it’s routine traffic stop, responding to a domestic assault call, or executing a search warrant on a known drug dealer, police are trained to prepare for all possible scenarios. Training and preparation are critical to staying alive when walking into an unknown situation as the officers did on that December evening. I commend the Providence Police Narcotics Unit for their action in bringing down a violent drug dealer who clearly has no consideration for life. Our neighborhoods are safer with Christopher Hall behind bars today thanks to the actions of the Providence Police and our criminal justice system.”
Upon receiving information that the resident of 12 Hollis Street’s first floor unit, Christopher Hall, had a large quantity of crack cocaine, members of the Providence Police Department’s Narcotics Unit responded to the residence at 7:00 p.m. on December 14, 2009 to execute a court-authorized search warrant on the first floor apartment. Police were aware that Hall lived there with his mother.
Six officers approached the back entrance via the driveway. Their movements activated lights connected to a motion detector. When their knocks on the door failed to gain any response, they used a battering ram to open the reinforced door.
As the Providence Police detectives entered, they saw Hall standing directly in front of them, 10 to 12 feet away. Hall was armed with a 9 mm handgun that he pointed directly at Detectives Black and Ludovici and fired. Detectives Black and Ludovici took cover and fired back. One shot fired by Hall hit Detective Sical in the calf and went through the foot of Detective Robles. Hall retreated and was found crouched in his bedroom doorway, still holding his gun. It was later determined that Detective Black was grazed in the arm by one of Hall’s two shots.
Following this incident members of the Narcotics Unit not involved in the initial raid searched the unit and discovered a large quantity of crack cocaine, marijuana and implements of the narcotics trade, along with a significant amount of ammunition.
The defendant later gave a confession in which he admitted to shooting at the police and possession of the drugs.
In consideration of his plea, the State dismissed five counts—one count of possession with intent to deliver cocaine, one count of possession with intent to deliver marijuana, one count of possession of a firearm while possessing cocaine with the intent to deliver, one count of possession of a firearm while possessing marijuana with the intent to deliver, and one count of resisting arrest.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant Attorneys General Matthew Dawson and Pamela Chin.
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