Two teens shot; third is charged; one wounded 16-year-old is son of city DPS officer
By T&D StaffSaturday, June 11, 2005A 16-year-old has been charged with two counts of assault with intent to kill after he allegedly shot two other 16-year-olds, one of them the son of a Department of Public Safety officer, Friday night. Both of the shooting victims were reported in stable condition late Saturday.
Orangeburg County Sheriff Larry Williams said the incident took place around 9:30 p.m. in the 1100 block of Woodbine Drive.
He said the three juveniles had been "hanging out" together on Woodbine when tempers apparently flared between them.
Williams said the suspect in the shootings left the area for awhile and when he returned, he said something to the other two juveniles along the lines of "What's going on?" or "What's cool?"
The sheriff said one of the victims responded by saying, "We don't go down like that" or "We're not going anywhere with you."
That's when the suspect pulled a .38 caliber revolver, Williams said. He said one of the victims tried to take the gun away from the suspect and was shot once in the arm and once in the hand during the struggle. The suspect then shot the second victim in the right side of the temple, the sheriff said. He said a total of five or six shots were fired and investigators recovered five or six casings.
Following the shooting, the suspect fled, Williams said.
He said one of the victims was airlifted to a Columbia hospital and the other was transported by ambulance to The Regional Medical Center.
Williams said the two shooting victims only knew the shooter by an alias and not his real name.
"But my fellows don't give up," the sheriff said. He said eight deputies worked the case and were able to determine the identity to the shooter by 3:30 or 4 a.m. Saturday and subsequently found the suspect "on the street" still carrying the handgun.
Investigators found no evidence that the shootings were gang-related, Williams said, and there was no indication that drugs or alcohol were involved in the incident.
He said that in his opinion the three juveniles didn't have anything to do and "got into mischief."
The investigation is continuing, Williams said.
DPS Chief Wendell Davis confirmed that one of the shooting victims is the son of a DPS officer, and he also confirmed that the officer's son was in stable condition.
