Another Midlands mom is arrested after her child is accused in shooting, sheriff says
The mother of another teenager involved in a violent gun crime has been arrested in connection with her child’s actions, according to the Richland County Sheriff’s Department.
Last week, Sheriff Leon Lott vowed to begin holding parents criminally responsible for their children’s crimes. His department initially charged the mother of a 13-year-old who admitted shooting and killing a sheriff’s K9. This week, the mother of a 14-year-old accused of killing a 15-year-old in December was arrested, according to a news release.
Deputies on Monday charged Patrice Johnson, 48, with accessory after the fact of a felony/murder in connection with the shooting death of a 15-year-old on Quinton Lane on Dec. 16, 2024, a news release said. Johnson is the mother of a 14-year-old who was charged last month with, among other things, murder in the 15-year-old’s death.
Johnson, deputies say, knew about the 15-year-old being shot before waiting nearly two hours to notify police, the release said.
On Friday, Lott said the arrest of the dog killer’s mother marked a new new strategy to fight youth gun violence.
“This is an example of what we’re going to be doing from now on,” Lott said during a news conference.“As we have these young people who are caught out here at night and breaking in and stealing cars, guns, etc., we’re going to do a further investigation on what . . . the parents know. And when the parents say, ‘I don’t care, I can’t control them,’ then we’re going to hold these parents accountable.”
Around 3 a.m. on Dec. 16, deputies were patrolling near Hardscrabble and Clemson roads when they heard shots fired, a news release said.
Deputies attempted to locate the shooting before a caller dialed 911 call and aid they believed a body was on their back porch, according to a news release.
At the caller’s residence, deputies located the unresponsive 15-year-old victim with multiple gun shot wounds. The Richland County Coroner’s Office pronounced the victim dead at the scene, a release said.
Johnson’s 14-year-old son was apprehended at a residence by Richland and Lexington County sheriff deputies later that afternoon, according to a news release. Deputies also located the firearm used in the shooting at the residence.
The juvenile was charged with murder and possession of a handgun by a person under 18.
Johnson was booked into the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center.
