An Ashley County man currently serving a 40-year prison sentence failed to convince the Arkansas Court of Appeals the judge in his case erred by failing to give the jury an alternative-sanction instruction regarding some of the charges against him.
Paul Gill, 63, was convicted of 22 counts of committing a terroristic act and one count of aggravated residential burglary following a trial on June 25, 2024.
He was accused of firing shots at his brother-in-law with an AR-15 rifle on Nov. 11, 2022 and entering the house before he was shot by the brother-in-law. Police found 22 shell casings from the AR-15 in the brother-in-law’s house.
During the sentencing phase of the trial, Gill’s attorney asked that Judge Robert B. Gibson III to give the jury a jury instruction dealing with alternative sentencing for the terroristic act counts, namely probation or a suspended sentence and a fine. Gibson ruled that based on the totaling of the case including forensic reports and Gill’s mental health history, “this was not a probation case.”
Additionally, the aggravated residential burglary charge is not a probation offense so the court would not accept a probation recommendation on the terroristic act charges. Even if the jury gave probation on the terrorist act charges, Gill was still going to prison.
In his appeal, Gill contended that by not giving the alternative sentencing instruction, he suffered prejudice because the jury could have considered the alternative instruction and sentenced him to probation or less time overall.
Aggravated residential burglary is a Class Y felony with a sentence range of 10 to 40 years or life in prison. Terroristic Act is a Class B felony with a sentencing range of not less than 5 and not more than 20 years in prison.
Gill was sentenced to 40 years in prison on the aggravated residential burglary and 10 years each on the 22 counts of terroristic act with the sentences to run concurrently or at the same time.
He is serving his sentence at the Pine Bluff Unit and will be eligible to apply for parole on Aug. 19, 2034.
