A Logan County jury convicted a Lakeview man Thursday, April 17, on all criminal counts related to a standoff that occurred at his home in Chippewa Park in August 2024.
Holley Tolliver, 58, of 11331 Big Bear Path, was emotionless as Judge Kevin P. Braig read the verdicts into the record at the conclusion of a four-day jury trial. The jury deliberated for approximately four hours before reaching the unanimous verdict.
He was convicted on 16 counts of felonious assault on a peace officer, felonies of the first degree, and accompanying seven-year firearm specifications. The jury also convicted him on four counts of improperly discharging a firearm into a habitation, felonies of the second degree, and accompanying three-year firearm specifications.
The jury found that Tolliver burglarized the home of a neighbor and stole some of the firearms that he used to fire on law enforcement from that home. Based on those findings, the jury found Tolliver guilty of burglary, a felony of the second degree, and grand theft when the property is a firearm, a felony of the third degree.
Aug. 14, law enforcement responded to the area after a neighbor called 911 to report that someone had fired a gunshot into their home. Deputies quickly determined that the gunshot came from Tolliver’s home.
Deputies set up a perimeter around his home and made numerous attempts to get him to come out. A stand-off ensued that lasted more than 10 hours.
During the standoff, Tolliver fired gunshots at officers as they deployed robots, drones and teargas at his home. Many officers’ lives were at risk as he fired gunshots toward them.
Tolliver was shot in the arm and nose at the end of the standoff and he then quickly surrendered. After the standoff, officers located dozens of firearms in his home that had been recently stolen from a nearby neighbor’s home in Chippewa Park.
Trial began Monday, April 14, when jurors were transported to the scene of the shooting. They were able to visually observe the damage to the neighbor’s residences from the gunfire as well as Tolliver’s residence, which sustained damage from gunfire and breach of the structure by a tactical vehicle.
Tolliver testified in his own defense. He denied burglarizing the neighbor’s home or stealing the firearms and claimed that he only shot into the ground, not at law enforcement officers that surrounded his home on Big Bear Path in the Indian Lake neighborhood known as Chippewa.
During the trial, Logan County Prosecutor Eric Stewart presented numerous videos that showed Tolliver shooting at law enforcement from inside his home. Stewart argued to the jury that Tolliver’s claims that he did not commit the offenses were not credible and that Tolliver was attempting to commit “suicide by cop” after enduring several personal setbacks.
Tolliver’s defense counsel, Addie King of Urbana, requested the court to instruct the jury on the not guilty by reason of insanity defense.
Thirty-four witnesses testified for the state, including a forensic psychologist who evaluated Tolliver for competency and insanity to assess his mental state and determine his ability to stand trial, and found he was both competent and sane at the time of the crime.
“We are pleased with the verdict. Mr. Tolliver’s actions put the lives of his neighbors, community and many law enforcement officers in danger” said Prosecutor Stewart, who presented the case along with Assistant Prosecutor Erin Rosen.
Judge Braig ordered that Tolliver will remain in the Logan County Jail as he has since the day of the incident and scheduled a sentencing hearing for 3:30 p.m. May 19.