No bond hearing Monday for Camden man charged in teen’s death

The bond hearing for a Camden area man charged with manslaugher in the shooting death of a 17-year-old will be this week in general sessions court, though not on Monday, according to Kershaw County Sheriff Jim Matthews.

Jimmy Joe Methe, 49 of Norden Drive in Camden, was charged with voluntary manslaughter, after law enforcement officials say he shot and killed Brandon Scott Spencer, of McCrae Road in Camden, early Saturday morning. Methe alleged the teen was stealing things from his pickup truck, according to law enforcement officials.

The bond hearing will not be Monday because of the Presidents Day holiday, Matthews said. A specific date had not been set Sunday.

“This is a tragedy for both families,” Matthews said Sunday. “Stealing is not a capital offense.”

Matthews said Methe was charged because Spencer was fleeing the scene.

Deputies responded at about 3 a.m. Saturday to Methe’s Norden Drive address. Methe told them he had shot a person, later identified as Spencer, after seeing Spencer and another person stealing items from his truck, according to a sheriff’s office news release.

Deputies found Spencer’s body in the road about 35 yards from the house. He had been shot one time in the head. Anyone with Methe had fled the scene and has not yet been identified, the sheriff’s office said.

The Stand Your Ground defense does not apply, Matthews said Saturday night.

“The law states that you can use deadly force to protect yourself, your family or someone who is in immediate danger of death or great bodily harm,” Matthews said. “The law does not allow you to shoot and kill someone who has stolen from you and is fleeing. Unfortunately, Jimmy Methe made a split-second, bad decision and will now face criminal charges.”

Methe was cooperative with the responding officers. He was taken into custody without incident.

Investigators recovered items that had been removed from Methe’s truck. They also located a gas can and hose that they believe were to be used to siphon gas from the truck.

The neighborhood where this shooting took place has been hit with several vehicle break-ins as well as larcenies and burglaries in recent months, the sheriff’s office said. Two firearms were reported stolen earlier from a vehicle at Methe’s residence, the sheriff’s office said.

Methe was being held at the Kershaw County Detention Center.

This story was originally published February 14, 2016 at 4:12 PM with the headline "No bond hearing Monday for Camden man charged in teen’s death."