Prosecutors explain why attempted murder charges were dropped
By Delayna Earley
The Island News
Seven people have now been indicted in connection with the July 4 shooting at Coligny Beach, as prosecutors revealed Friday, July 17, why the attempted murder charges initially announced after the incident have been replaced with assault and battery charges under a legal strategy rooted in one of Beaufort County’s most well-known homicide cases.
A Beaufort County grand jury returned indictments Thursday, July 16, against seven defendants in connection with the shooting, which left eight people wounded after gunfire erupted during a holiday weekend confrontation on Hilton Head Island. Authorities said the investigation remains active and additional charges remain possible.
The indictments charge:
- Jayden Lorenzo Hawes, 18, of St. Helena Island with two counts of Assault and Battery of a High and Aggravated Nature, four counts of Assault and Battery, Second Degree, Breach of the Peace, High and Aggravated Nature and Possession of a Weapon During the Commission of a Violent Crime.
- Quazeir Rashim Davis, 17, of St. Helena Island with two counts of Assault and Battery of a High and Aggravated Nature, four counts of Assault and Battery, Second Degree, Breach of the Peace, High and Aggravated Nature, Possession or Acquisition of a Handgun by a Person Under 18 Years of Age and Possession of a Weapon During the Commission of a Violent Crime.
- Marcello Lopez Royal, 17, of St. Helena Island with two counts of Assault and Battery of a High and Aggravated Nature, four counts of Assault and Battery, Second Degree, Breach of the Peace, High and Aggravated Nature, Possession or Acquisition of a Handgun by a Person Under 18 Years of Age and Possession of a Weapon During the Commission of a Violent Crime.
- Andre Nyciere-Richard Greene Jr., 20, of Ridgeland with two counts of Assault and Battery of a High and Aggravated Nature, four counts of Assault and Battery, Second Degree, Breach of the Peace, High and Aggravated Nature and Possession of a Weapon During the Commission of a Violent Crime.
- Jacob Malik Johnson, 22, of Beaufort with two counts of Assault and Battery of a High and Aggravated Nature, four counts of Assault and Battery, Second Degree, Breach of the Peace, High and Aggravated Nature and Possession of a Weapon During the Commission of a Violent Crime.
- Christopher Charles Capers II, 17, of St. Helena Island with Accessory After the Fact.
- Amarion Jameer Riley, 22, of Ridgeland with Possession of a Machine Gun and Breach of the Peace, High and Aggravated Nature.
The indictments are formal charging documents, and all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
‘Every shooter, every bullet’
During Friday’s press conference, Fourteenth Circuit Solicitor Duffie Stone said the indictments reflect a prosecution strategy his office has used for more than a decade in cases involving multiple shooters.
Stone traced that approach back to the 2012 killing of 8-year-old Khalil Singleton, who was struck and killed while caught in the crossfire during a gun battle on Hilton Head Island.
“Ever since the death of Khalil Singleton, which is now some 14 years ago, our office, working with the Sheriff’s Office, has sought to hold every shooter in a situation in which there is a gun battle with multiple people who turn an otherwise peaceful environment into a battlefield,” Stone said.
Stone said prosecutors charged not only the individual who fired the fatal shot that killed Singleton, but also the other people involved in the exchange of gunfire.
“The South Carolina Supreme Court affirmed that in 2020, and it is a theory that we have been actively using,” Stone said. “We will not limit charges to just those people who fire the fatal bullet or the bullet that causes the harm. Again, in a gun battle with multiple shooters who turn an otherwise peaceful environment into a battlefield, we will attempt to hold every shooter accountable for every bullet.”
Stone said he explains the concept to juries with a simple phrase.
“The way I’ve explained it to juries before is every shooter is responsible for every bullet.”
Why attempted murder charges were dropped
The announcement also answered a question many have had since the shooting – why attempted murder charges announced shortly after the incident no longer appear in the indictments.
Stone said South Carolina’s attempted murder statute only applies to intended targets.
Because investigators determined the alleged shooters were firing at one another, prosecutors had to decide whether the alleged shooters would be treated as victims or defendants.
“They were,” Stone said when asked about the original attempted murder charges. “They’re not, and we’re not going forward on those, and here’s why.”
“The state statute on attempted murder is directed to vindicate only the intended targets of a shooting. In this scenario, the only intended targets are other shooters.”
Stone said prosecutors instead chose to pursue charges on behalf of the innocent bystanders struck during the exchange of gunfire.
“The sheriff and I discussed this from the very beginning,” Stone said. “We had a choice. Call the other shooters victims or defendants, and we chose defendants. That’s why you have the charges that you have for assault and battery for the true victims in this crime, who are the people who are the innocent bystanders who are not picking up a gun and being involved in the gun battle.”
Stone said the legal limitation has prompted solicitors across South Carolina to seek changes to state law.
He said prosecutors worked with the South Carolina Senate last year on legislation that would have expanded the attempted murder statute to cover unintended victims struck during shootings like the Coligny Beach incident. The bill passed the Senate but did not clear the House before the legislative session ended.
Stone noted that under current law, prosecutors can charge murder if an unintended victim is killed but cannot pursue attempted murder when an unintended victim survives, calling it a gap in the statute that should be corrected.
Technology helped investigators move quickly
Stone and Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner credited the Sheriff’s Office’s surveillance technology with allowing investigators to rapidly identify suspects and present the case to the grand jury less than two weeks after the shooting.
Stone said a Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office mobile Verkada camera trailer stationed at Coligny Beach captured much of the incident, while Hilton Head Island’s Flock license plate reader system helped investigators identify a suspect vehicle shortly after the shooting.
“What has allowed us to go quicker in this matter is, again, the technology used by the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office,” Stone said. “It was the Sheriff’s Office camera that was on the beach at the time and caught a good bit of everything on video. That helps us not only move forward quicker, but most importantly, with certainty.”
Tanner said investigators uploaded information about a suspect vehicle into the Flock system, which identified the vehicle on Pope Avenue at 9:02 p.m. Deputies stopped the vehicle on the Cross Island Parkway bridge five minutes later.
“We had six people in the vehicle, and we were able to take all six of those to the Hilton Head office. Out of those six, four were arrested that night,” Tanner said.
Tanner said the investigation demonstrates the value of technology that has drawn criticism in the past.
“The camera that we had on the beach is amazing technology,” he said. “The Flock system … helped us identify a vehicle and make a traffic stop within minutes. So, very, very important.”
Investigators: Dispute started over a look
For the first time since the shooting, Tanner also offered a more detailed explanation of what investigators believe sparked the confrontation.
“I’ve already said this in a previous press conference, but since that press conference, we know that this entire incident was a result of juvenile ego,” Tanner said.
“It was a look. So one person got a look from another that he didn’t like. He felt it disrespected him. And then from there it turned into a fist fight. And from the fist fight it turned into gunplay.”
Tanner declined to say whether investigators have determined the shooting was gang-related, saying it would be premature to make that determination while the investigation continues.
“There are things that we’re looking at,” Tanner said. “When you start making claims about this being gang-related or not gang-related and the investigation is still ongoing, it’s premature to make those comments.”
He added that additional arrests remain possible as investigators continue to develop the case.
Modified handgun led to machine gun charge
Tanner confirmed investigators recovered a handgun that had been modified to function as a machine gun during the investigation.
He also said Riley, who was arrested in Jasper County, was found in possession of another modified handgun capable of automatic fire when he was taken into custody. Tanner said that weapon is unrelated to the July 4 shooting but resulted in the machine gun charge included in Riley’s indictment.
“The one we recovered on the beach was modified into a machine gun,” Tanner said.
Sheriff defends department amid police debate
Much of Friday’s press conference also focused on the Sheriff’s Office’s response to criticism following the shooting and renewed discussion about whether Hilton Head Island should establish its own municipal police department.
Tanner defended his deputies’ response and investigative work, saying he believes the case demonstrates the effectiveness of the Sheriff’s Office.
“I am very, very proud of the men and women of the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office for how they handled this case and, quite frankly, how they handle all cases they work,” Tanner said. “They do an amazing job.”
Stone echoed those remarks, calling the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office one of the top law enforcement agencies he has worked with during his career.
“There’s not another law enforcement agency in the state of South Carolina that I would rather work with than the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office,” Stone said. “They do an outstanding job.”
Tanner said the town has every right to pursue its own police department if residents support the idea, but argued the discussion should not be based on criticism of the Sheriff’s Office’s handling of the Coligny Beach shooting.
“What gets me about this incident on July 4, it gave them cause to have a special meeting to talk about law enforcement services,” Tanner said. “They tried to use some of the best professional law enforcement reaction as a qualifier to getting their own police force. … I don’t care what police force you had, it could not have been done better.”
What happened on July 4?
The shooting occurred shortly after 8:20 p.m. on July 4 when a fight between two groups escalated into an exchange of gunfire near Coligny Beach during one of the busiest nights of the holiday weekend.
Authorities have said eight people suffered gunshot wounds. Investigators have described the injuries as non-life-threatening and have said the victims included innocent bystanders caught in the crossfire.
The incident prompted a multiagency investigation involving witness interviews, surveillance video, forensic evidence and social media, and reignited public discussion about safety at Coligny Beach during peak tourism season.
Bond hearings for Hawes, Davis, Royal, Greene and Johnson are scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, July 22, at the Beaufort County Detention Center.
Delayna Earley, who joined The Island News in 2022, formerly worked as a photojournalist for The Island Packet/The Beaufort Gazette, as well as newspapers in Indiana and Virginia. She can be reached at delayna.theislandnews@gmail.com.