Why did Kevin Monahan shoot Kaylin Gillis?

In 2023, 20-year-old Kaylin Gillis was riding in an SUV with friends on their way to a house party. While she was still in the vehicle, Kevin Monahan shot and killed her. Here’s why he pulled the trigger, and how much time Monahan will spend behind bars for the crime.

The day she died, Gillis was traveling with one other SUV and a motorcycle outside Hebron, New York, near Albany. Using a shotgun, Monahan fired twice into the vehicle, hitting Gillis in the neck. With limited cell service in the rural area, the group rushed Gillis to Salem, New York, near the Vermont border, and called 911. By the time emergency services arrived, however, Gillis was dead, the AP reported.

Monahan said he didn’t mean to fire the second shot

After about an hour of negotiating with Monahan inside his home after Kaylin Gillis died, the local police coaxed Monahan to come outside his home and arrested him for second-degree murder. Monahan, who pleaded not guilty, later testified he fired the first shot as a warning, but the second shot, killing Gillis, was a mistake.

Monahan said on the stand, “I didn’t mean to shoot the second shot. The gun went off” (via AP). At that moment, Monahan added, he thought he and his wife were “under siege.” When asked what his life is like after Gillis’ murder, he said he felt like his “soul is dead.“

Gillis vehicle made a wrong turn down Monahan’s driveway

In the end, Kaylin Gillis died because she and her friends made the mistake of turning down the wrong driveway. Monahan opened fire from his porch as they were trying to leave. In a press conference, Washington County Sheriff Jeffrey Murphy, who investigated the incident, said: “[Gillis] was an innocent young girl who was out with friends looking for another friend’s house … There was no reason for Mr. Monahan to feel threatened,” he later added (via the Times Union of Albany).

When Gillis died, her family said in a statement:

“Kaylin was a talented artist, an honor student, a Disney fanatic, and loved animals. She was looking forward to starting college in Florida to pursue her dream of becoming a marine biologist.”

In January 2024, Monahan was convicted of second-degree murder as well as reckless endangerment and tampering with physical evidence. About two months later, Monahan received a 25-year prison sentence for Gillis’ death.

At his sentencing hearing, Judge Adam Michelini told Monahan, “I think you really could possibly do the same thing again. It’s obvious to me that you feel justified. You don’t take any responsibility for the outcome of your actions. You just don’t get it.”