TheeBadOne
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A Sumter County deputy responding to a domestic disturbance Tuesday afternoon shot and killed a man wielding a knife, officials said.
When the officer, whom Sheriff Tommy Mims refused to identify, entered the mobile home at 2365 Whipporwill Drive just after 3 p.m., he was confronted by 69-year-old Boyce Jones, according to officials.
Jones, a resident of the home, was still clutching the knife he had picked up during an argument with another man, authorities said.
The deputy instructed Jones to drop the weapon, but he ignored the directive, Mims said.
The sheriff said rather than letting go of the knife, Jones challenged the deputy and said, “Go ahead and shoot me. I’m going to kill you.â€
“The officer went ahead and shot, and it was a fatal wound,†Mims said.
Jones was shot once in the chest, Sumter County Coroner Verna Moore said.
Mims described the deputy as a “seasoned veteran†of the department but was unable to specify how long he has been employed with the county.
The sheriff said he would not release the name of the deputy “for security reasons†and would not elaborate.
Mims said this was the first time “in recent years†that a deputy has fatally wounded someone during a call. “It has happened in the past,†he said.
Hours after the shooting, Maedell Jones, Jones’ 41-year-old wife, was leaning against a car in the yard of the home beyond the police tape. Two red-haired children, her grandchildren, were sitting inside the vehicle, and another child climbed on the hood.
Maedell Jones lives in Kingstree and was not at the residence at the time of the shooting, but her daughter, who lives in the home, called her after the confrontation.
Jones clutched one of the children to her chest. “There was seven kids under the age of 18 inside,†she said. She said her 25-year-old daughter also witnessed the shooting.
The initial argument was sparked by a phone call from a young woman and Jones’ comments on the phone, she said.
Benny Feagin, 32, a family friend who also lives in the mobile home, and Jones began arguing, she said. Boyce Jones then grabbed the blade, she said.
“He had the knife after him, and my daughter got in between them,†Maedell Jones said.
Jones questioned the actions of the officer, saying her husband had health problems and was extremely ill.
“It’s just a shame the way it happened,†she said. “He was dying, he didn’t have no heart. They didn’t have to take him like that.â€
A neighbor across the dirt road who declined to give her name said she didn’t know her neighbors well but was aware of Jones’ health problems.
“This old man was so sick he could hardly walk,†she said.
Jones’ son, Lt. Robert Jones, is employed with the sheriff’s office and was notified of the shooting and his father’s death, Mims said
A team of investigators from the State Law Enforcement Division was on the scene late Tuesday and will continue an investigation into the incident.
The deputy has been placed on administrative leave with pay pending the outcome of the inquiry.
An autopsy has been scheduled for today.
http://www.theitem.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20031224/NEWS01/112240048
When the officer, whom Sheriff Tommy Mims refused to identify, entered the mobile home at 2365 Whipporwill Drive just after 3 p.m., he was confronted by 69-year-old Boyce Jones, according to officials.
Jones, a resident of the home, was still clutching the knife he had picked up during an argument with another man, authorities said.
The deputy instructed Jones to drop the weapon, but he ignored the directive, Mims said.
The sheriff said rather than letting go of the knife, Jones challenged the deputy and said, “Go ahead and shoot me. I’m going to kill you.â€
“The officer went ahead and shot, and it was a fatal wound,†Mims said.
Jones was shot once in the chest, Sumter County Coroner Verna Moore said.
Mims described the deputy as a “seasoned veteran†of the department but was unable to specify how long he has been employed with the county.
The sheriff said he would not release the name of the deputy “for security reasons†and would not elaborate.
Mims said this was the first time “in recent years†that a deputy has fatally wounded someone during a call. “It has happened in the past,†he said.
Hours after the shooting, Maedell Jones, Jones’ 41-year-old wife, was leaning against a car in the yard of the home beyond the police tape. Two red-haired children, her grandchildren, were sitting inside the vehicle, and another child climbed on the hood.
Maedell Jones lives in Kingstree and was not at the residence at the time of the shooting, but her daughter, who lives in the home, called her after the confrontation.
Jones clutched one of the children to her chest. “There was seven kids under the age of 18 inside,†she said. She said her 25-year-old daughter also witnessed the shooting.
The initial argument was sparked by a phone call from a young woman and Jones’ comments on the phone, she said.
Benny Feagin, 32, a family friend who also lives in the mobile home, and Jones began arguing, she said. Boyce Jones then grabbed the blade, she said.
“He had the knife after him, and my daughter got in between them,†Maedell Jones said.
Jones questioned the actions of the officer, saying her husband had health problems and was extremely ill.
“It’s just a shame the way it happened,†she said. “He was dying, he didn’t have no heart. They didn’t have to take him like that.â€
A neighbor across the dirt road who declined to give her name said she didn’t know her neighbors well but was aware of Jones’ health problems.
“This old man was so sick he could hardly walk,†she said.
Jones’ son, Lt. Robert Jones, is employed with the sheriff’s office and was notified of the shooting and his father’s death, Mims said
A team of investigators from the State Law Enforcement Division was on the scene late Tuesday and will continue an investigation into the incident.
The deputy has been placed on administrative leave with pay pending the outcome of the inquiry.
An autopsy has been scheduled for today.
http://www.theitem.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20031224/NEWS01/112240048
