In the early morning hours of July 6, 2015, the quiet of an Ogden, Utah neighborhood was shattered by the sound of a single gunshot. Responding to a 4 a.m. report of a person lying in the street, police discovered the body of 32-year-old William Patrick Hicks on the 2900 block of Childs Avenue. Hicks, a Black/African American male, had sustained a fatal gunshot wound and was pronounced dead at the scene.
The initial investigation quickly shifted from a suspicious death to a homicide.
Investigators worked swiftly to piece together the events that led to the shooting. Their efforts led them to a suspect, Andrew Dominic Esquer, who was 30 years old at the time. By that same evening, Esquer was taken into custody and later charged with murder and obstruction of justice. The motive for the killing appeared to stem from a heated argument between the two men over an alleged prior theft. Esquer claimed that Hicks had stolen approximately $300 from a female friend of his, money that was intended for her rent and groceries. Esquer told authorities that he shot Hicks with a sawed-off shotgun when he felt disrespected during the confrontation.
After the shooting, Esquer fled the scene and attempted to conceal the evidence. He hid the sawed-off shotgun and a bag of ammunition inside the plumbing access of a nearby home. Despite his efforts to evade responsibility, the investigation led police to Esquer, who was located first at his aunt's house on the same street as the shooting and later arrested at his mother's home. During questioning, he admitted to his involvement in the incident.
Andrew Dominic Esquer's case proceeded to trial, where his defense team argued that he had acted in self-defense. However, a jury found him guilty of both murder, a first-degree felony, and obstruction of justice, a second-degree felony. On May 17, 2017, he was sentenced to a term of at least 15 years to life in prison for the murder charge. An additional year was added to his sentence for a weapons enhancement, and he received a concurrent sentence of one to 15 years for obstructing justice.
