Jury acquits Somerset man in ‘22 shooting death of teen
HILLSDALE — The jury panel charged with deciding the case of a 2022 shooting death in Somerset delivered a not-guilty verdict late Tuesday afternoon after a week of testimony.
Ultimately, the jurors found that Kirk Thomas Culik, 68, acted in self-defense when he shot and killed 16-year-old Robert Jeffrey Flint on May 22, 2022, after a verbal altercation escalated.
“We appreciate the time and attention the jury put into the case,” said Chief Assistant Prosecutor Jamie Wisniewski. “At the end of the day, the situation is a tragedy. Someone lost their life. We’re asking people to be thoughtful of that and allow the family time to process the circumstances.”
Terry L. Johnson, the defense attorney representing Culik, was unable to be reached for comment on the trial as of Thursday.
The Hillsdale County Prosecutor’s Office charged Culik with homicide — open murder — statutory short form and felony firearm within hours of the shooting in May 2022 after an altercation erupted between him and Flint in front of Culik’s home on Mill Street in Somerset.
Flint’s brother, who was present during the shooting, testified during a July 2022 preliminary examination hearing that Culik initiated an attack on his brother after a verbal altercation escalated.
Culik stepped out of his driveway into the road and confronted the teens and then allegedly shoved Flint.
During the physical altercation, Flint’s brother allegedly joined in and, at one point, Culik was knocked to the ground which is when he pulled out a concealed handgun and fired one round striking Flint in the upper chest.
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Flint was taken by paramedics to Henry Ford Hospital in Jackson where he later died.
Culik has maintained his actions were in self-defense since his arrest, but prosecutors argued this is not the case as Culik is the one who initiated the assault on Flint.
Defense attorneys countered that was nullified when the second teenager joined the altercation, outnumbering the then 67-year-old who ended up on his back on the ground.
— Contact Reporter Corey Murray at cmurray@hillsdale.net or follow him on X, formerly Twitter: @cmurrayHDN.
This article originally appeared on Hillsdale Daily News: Jury acquits Somerset man in ‘22 shooting death of teen
