Man livestreamed himself trying to kill a Florida cop, officials say. He’s sentenced

A man who livestreamed himself trying to kill a Florida cop with a brick will spend the rest of his life in prison — after making the surprising choice to represent himself in court.

The jury took less than an hour to find William McClish, 29, guilty of attempted murder of a law enforcement officer, according to an April 3 news release form State Attorney Andrew Bain of the Ninth Judicial Circuit.

McClish was sentenced to life in prison.

Bain noted McClish’s opening remarks at his trial consisted of one sentence: “I didn’t do it and the evidence was tampered with.”

Two uniformed Orlando officers were injured during the Sept. 25, 2021, brawl with McClish, officials said.

“The defendant leaned his phone against a trash can, positioning the two officers in view of the camera. McClish began streaming live on Facebook and armed himself with a brick,” Bain said.

“He ... was captured on video striking an officer in the head with the brick. A struggle ensued between McClish, the second officer and a witness who all tried to subdue McClish, who was actively fighting and resisting.”

McClish bit the second officer and gouged one of his eyes, then tried to take an officer’s gun, officials say. When an officer tried calling for backup, McClish ripped his radio off, officials said.

“After a few minutes, additional officers arrived on the scene and arrested McClish,” officials said.

Details of the injuries suffered by the two officers were not included in the release.

Investigators then discovered McClish boasted about the attack while in jail.

“Further investigation revealed a previously recorded video on his phone where he stated, ‘I’m gonna kill him on live,’ establishing premeditation and his intention to kill,” Bain said.

McClish was also found guilty of resisting an officer with violence, aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer with great bodily harm, depriving an officer of means of protection/communication, and attempted depriving officer of means of protection/communication, officials said.

This story was originally published April 5, 2024 at 12:48 PM with the headline "Man livestreamed himself trying to kill a Florida cop, officials say. He’s sentenced."