Highland man pleads guilty to murder of Pontoon Beach police officer

Scott Hyden, the Highland man accused of shooting police officer Tyler Timmons at a Pontoon Beach gas station, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in a Madison County court Wednesday.

Timmins, 36, was a 14-year law enforcement veteran investigating what he suspected was a stolen vehicle at the Speedway gas Station off Interstate 270 at the Illinois 111 interchange shortly before 8 a.m. on Oct. 26. Illinois State Police said Hyden shot Timmins in the face and neck.

Backed by dozens of local police officers and other family members at Wednesday’s hearing, Timmin’s wife, Linsey Timmons, also a police officer, gave a victim impact statement.

“Justice for my husband was served today from this senseless act of violence,” she said. “The outcome of the court hearing does not change what Hyden took from my family and me, but we are grateful that Hyden will never be able to harm another person for the rest of his life.”

Hyden was arrested at the scene of the shooting and later charged with two counts of first-degree murder, one count of aggravated discharge of a firearm at a peach officer, one count of unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon, one count of possessing a stolen firearm and a count of felony motor vehicle theft. He was on parole through the federal court at the time of the killing.

Because Hyden killed a police officer as he was performing his official duty, his plea Wednesday guarantees he’ll serve a life sentence.

“This was a brutal murder of a hero who dedicated his life to serve and protect us all,” Madison County State’s Attorney Tom Haine said in a statement. “Now at least the justice system has ensured that Officer Tyler Timmins’s murderer will spend the rest of his life in prison. That is some consolation, though nothing can ever bring Tyler back to his incredible family. They will continue to be in our prayers.”

Timmons joined the Pontoon Beach Police Department in 2020 after previously serving in Roxana, Worden and Hartford in Madison County. In addition to his wife, he is survived by his father Timothy Timmins and a daughter, Chloe Rice.

He was remembered by his family through a statement as “a hero since day one.”

“The murder of Officer Tyler Timmins has impacted our police department beyond words. We will never be the same,” Pontoon Beach Police Chief Chris Modrusic said at the hearing Wednesday. “Today justice was served, but it does not take away the pain our department has felt from this senseless act.

“Now that the case is closed, we can begin the healing process. We will continue to put on our uniforms everyday to serve and protect, as Officer Timmins would have wanted us to do. On behalf of every member of the Pontoon Beach Police Department, I would like to thank everyone involved in bringing justice for Officer Timmins.”

Timmins was the second metro-east police officer to be killed in the line of duty in 2021. In August, Bryan Pierce, 24, of the Brooklyn Police Department was hit by car on the McKinley Bridge trying to deploy spike strips.

This story was originally published April 13, 2022 at 6:29 PM.