SC man formerly convicted of lynching gets life in deadly shooting, solicitor says
A Lexington man, who formerly served 20 years for lynching has been sentenced to life in prison in a 2021 murder, according to the 11th Circuit Solicitor’s Office.
Mark A. Scheibler, 50, was sentenced to life in prison by Circuit Judge Walton J. McLeod IV for the murder of Jimmy Ferney Johnson, a news release said. He was also convicted of possessing a weapon during the commission of a violent crime.
Eleventh Circuit Deputy Solicitor Suzanne Mayes and Assistant Solicitor Kelly Oppenheimer said that on the morning of Nov. 27, 2021, Scheibler intended to kill Johnson when he went to Johnson’s residence on Mac Circle in Lexington County. The pair had previously had a dispute, the release said.
When Scheibler arrived, he slashed the tires on Johnson’s vehicle and waited for him to come outside, according to the release.
Once Johnson appeared, Scheibler shot him at least five times, including once in the back, the release said. Johnson was unarmed.
Following the shooting, Scheibler left the scene and eventually abandoned the car he’d been driving.
He was apprehended on Dec. 2, 2021 in Richland County after a standoff on Thrush Street, according to the release.
After his arrest, Scheibler was also charged with shooting his girlfriend in the head on Nov. 19, 2021, to which he pleaded guilty to in 2024.
Scheibler had previously been convicted of second-degree lynching, pointing and presenting a firearm, assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature and grand larceny of a vehicle. He served 20 years in prison before being released in 2012.
He’s now on his way to the South Carolina Department of Corrections to immediately begin serving a life sentence.
