Jury selection began Monday in the Rodney L. Hinton murder trial, marking the first courtroom test in the case against the defendant accused of killing Hamilton County special deputy Larry Henderson with a vehicle. Judge Jody Luebbers called 107 potential jurors as the process opened in Hamilton County.
More than a dozen potential jurors had already been dismissed as attorneys started working through a 23-page questionnaire and days of questioning. Clyde Bennett II said he was looking for jurors who could follow the law given by Judge Luebbers and be fair after a case built around a death that drew strong reactions from the victim’s family.
Clyde Bennett II in Hamilton County
Bennett told WLWT, “follow the law given by Judge Luebbers.” He also said, “That’s going to be difficult,” and added, “I’m looking for 12 individuals from Hamilton County that can be fair and impartial, notwithstanding the fact that you have a very valued, loved deputy that was killed in the line of duty for no reason.”
The selection process matters because both sides must seat 12 jurors who can decide the case on the evidence after hearing about the May 2025 death of Henderson, who had retired from the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office about five months earlier. He was working as a special deputy directing traffic near the University of Cincinnati during graduation when prosecutors said Rodney L. Hinton intentionally used his vehicle to run him down and kill him.
Ryan Hinton video
The trial follows hours in which Hinton watched body camera video of his 18-year-old son, Ryan Hinton, being fatally shot by a Cincinnati officer responding to a report of a stolen vehicle at an apartment complex. Police said Ryan Hinton was among a group of people in an allegedly stolen car, that two officers pursued him and another person, and that one officer fired at least four times after Ryan Hinton appeared to be running away.
In another video, an officer could be heard yelling, “He’s got a gun!” Authorities said the gun was recovered at the scene. Police said concerned relatives drove Rodney L. Hinton from the station after he watched the video, then said he later returned to pick up his vehicle from the parking lot.
Monday in the trial
Police said that after leaving the parking lot, Hinton drove toward the university, appeared to stop, then allegedly accelerated quickly through an intersection where the deputy was standing. Police said there was no indication that he tried to stop. In December, Hinton changed his plea from not guilty to no contest, and jury selection was expected to resume Tuesday.
Theresa Larkin, Ryan Hinton’s aunt, told News, “I can only imagine what he felt when he saw that video.” She also said, “Because when I finally seen it, and I watched that video from the beginning to the end and watched my nephew drop, it was like my soul left my body. So I can only imagine how his father felt.”
