Suspected Columbia gunman has long, violent criminal past, including another public shooting
Tuesday wasn’t the first time the same man is accused of firing a gun in public while being in illegal possession of that gun as a convicted felon, a background check obtained by The State shows.
Brandon Joyner — the 26-year-old suspected gunman taken into custody Tuesday for, police say, firing gunshots into the air in the Stoneridge, Greystone Boulevard area — was previously arrested for the same offense in Greenwood County in April of 2022.
On that occasion, Greenwood police responded to an afternoon shots fired call where Joyner had allegedly used a handgun to fire several shots into the air before running to hide the gun inside of a car, according to an incident report. No one was injured during the shooting, and Joyner was charged with discharging a firearm in the city and possession of a firearm by person convicted of violent felony.
Shortly after his arrest, Joyner made bond an left town. A warrant was issued for his arrest when he failed to show for court, but The State was unable to verify whether that warrant for Joyner was active during Tuesday’s shooting.
The Greenwood case is currently pending, according to court records.
With more than a dozen other criminal charges and convictions, including multiple felonies, Joyner is an example of what some state lawmakers and Gov. Henry McMaster have said about the need to reform criminal laws in South Carolina, particularly related to illegal gun possession and repeat offenders.
From Lexington to Richland to Greenwood counties, and all the way over to Horry, Joyner has been charged 14 times since 2014.
He is now charged with 10 counts of attempted murder, possession of a handgun by a convicted felon, first-degree domestic violence, discharging a firearm into an occupied motor vehicle, possession of a weapon during commission of a violent crime, unlawful carrying of a pistol and breach of peace (high and aggravated), stemming from Tuesday’s Greystone Boulevard shooting, during which both Joyner and a police officer were injured.
Most recently before Tuesday’s incident, Joyner was arrested by Myrtle Beach police for felony domestic violence in October of 2022. Although he was released after posting a $10,000 bond, the Horry County arrest triggered a warrant from Lexington County for violation of probation.
That’s because in 2015 — and again in 2019 — Joyner was charged with threatening the life of a public official in Lexington County. For the 2015 offense, Joyner was sentenced to three years in prison, which was suspended in exchange for five years probation. But when he committed the same offense again in 2019, he ended up with a five-year prison sentence, suspended for two years prison time and five years probation.
Other charges levied against Joyner include felony burglary in Orangeburg and Richland counties in 2015. In Richland County, he was handed a six-year suspended sentence for two years of probation. In Orangeburg, he received a three-year suspended sentence for four years of probation.
Public disorderly conduct, reckless driving, and malicious injury to animals, personal property are other charges sprinkled throughout Joyner’s criminal past, with little to no jail time served.
Of the 14 criminal charges in Joyner’s past, the majority of which are felonies, Joyner has served less than three years of jail time, and instead has received ample amounts of probation, according to court records.
This story was originally published July 19, 2023 at 2:57 PM.
