Two men killed in shootings but no charges are filed, SC police say. Here’s why
Two men died in separate May shootings in South Carolina, but neither of their killers will face any charges, according to the Columbia Police Department.
After consulting with the 5th Circuit Solicitor’s Office, it was determined that both isolated fatal shootings were justifiable homicides, police said Monday night in a news release.
May 9 shooting
The first shooting happened May 9, according to the release. At about 6:30 a.m., officers responded to an emergency call about a shooting at the Carolina Lodge, formerly the Coronet Motel, police said. That’s in the 6300 block of North Main Street, in the area between Farrow Road and Fairfield Road, near Exit 70 on Interstate 20.
The body of a man, identified by the Richland County Coroner’s Office as Anthony L. Doctor, was found in the motel’s parking lot, according to the release.
No other injuries were reported.
Police said they conducted a thorough investigation and came to the conclusion that it was Doctor who was armed and acted as the primary aggressor before he was fatally shot.
Information about what led to the shooting was not available.
May 13 shooting
The other shooting happened May 13, according to the release. At about 9 p.m., officers responded to a Shotspotter alert that there was a shooting in the 2500 block of Booker Street, police said. That’s near the intersection with Farrow Road, and close to the Prisma Health Richland hospital complex.
ShotSpotter is a technology that uses acoustic monitors to detect a sound like gunfire. The system sends the gunfire’s location to Columbia police within 45 seconds.
When they arrived, officers found a man and woman suffering what police called “non-life threatening injuries to their lower bodies.” Further information on their conditions was not available.
A third person, identified by the coroner’s office as 44-year-old Timothy T. Jacobs was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead, according to the release.
Police said they believe Jacobs, who was also armed, acted as the primary aggressor before he was fatally shot.
There was no word about what led to the shooting.
In both unrelated shootings, police and the solicitor’s office said the men who fired the deadly shots were acting in self defense, according to South Carolina law.
“The two men were legally able to defend themselves against Doctor and Jacobs based on, in part, the ‘presumption of reasonable fear of imminent peril when using deadly force against another,’ ” police said in the release.
Both investigations are closed, according to police.
BEHIND THE STORY
MOREThis is a breaking news story
In a breaking news situation, facts can be unclear and the situation may still be developing. The State is trying to get important information to the public as quickly and accurately as possible. This story will be updated as more information becomes available, and some information in this story may change as the facts become clearer. Refresh this page later for more updated information.
