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How South Carolina's execution of a condemned killer by firing squad will unfold

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How South Carolina's execution of a condemned killer by firing squad will unfold


COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — When a South Carolina man who killed his ex-girlfriend’s parents with a baseball bat steps into the death row chamber Friday night, it won’t be lethal injection or electrocution that ends his life.

It will be three people holding rifles about 15 feet (4.6 meters) away who will complete his punishment in what will be the United States’ first firing squad execution in 15 years.

Some 46 prisoners have been executed by lethal injection and electrocution in South Carolina since 1985. Brad Sigmon’s execution will be the first by firing squad. Just three inmates — in Utah in 1977, 1996 and 2010 — have faced a firing squad in the U.S. since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976.

Reporters, family members of Sigmon’s victims and his lawyer will view the execution inside the same building used for all executions over the past 35 years, although prison officials say the glass separating the witness room from the death chamber is now bulletproof. Sigmon can give a last statement if he wishes.

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The crime

Sigmon, 67, is being executed for the 2001 baseball bat killings of his ex-girlfriend’s parents at their home in Greenville County. They were in separate rooms, and Sigmon went back and forth as he beat them to death, investigators said.

He then kidnapped his ex-girlfriend at gunpoint, but she escaped from his car. He shot at her as she ran but missed, according to prosecutors.

In a confession, Sigmon said, “I couldn’t have her. I wasn’t going to let anybody else have her.”

How Friday’s execution will unfold

Death row inmates in South Carolina are housed in a building adjacent to the death chamber at the Broad River Correctional Institution in Columbia. Shortly before his execution, Sigmon will be moved to an individual cell closer to where his life will end.

Just before 6 p.m., the warden will ask Gov. Henry McMaster by phone if he is granting clemency and the Attorney General’s Office if there any any legal blocks to the execution. If both answers are no, Sigmon will enter the death chamber and the witness room curtain will be opened.

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Sigmon can give a last statement. Then he will be strapped to a metal chair that sits on top of a catch basin. The right side of Sigmon’s face and body will be toward the witnesses. A hood will be placed on his head. A medical professional will briefly examine him to place a target over his heart, according to state protocols released in 2022.

Fifteen feet (4.6 meters) away will be three state Corrections Department volunteers with rifles. All three will have live ammunition. They will fire from an opening in a wall the witnesses can’t see.

A doctor will come out, passing by the state’s immobile electric chair, to confirm Sigmon is dead. The witnesses will leave after signing an official document that they witnessed the execution.

When lethal injections take place, a gurney is in the death chamber and behind it is a curtain that blocks the view of the electric chair and the firing squad chair.

The firing squad

Not much is known about the people who will fire the rifles. Prison officials said they have “completed all required training.”

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A shield law passed in 2023 in part to keep the name of any supplier of lethal injection drugs secret also keeps secret many other details about the firing squad, from what training it received to the names of anyone on the execution team.

A few details came out in court in 2022 during an unrelated trial that ultimately led the state Supreme Court to rule the firing squad, electric chair and lethal injection were all legal and didn’t violate the U.S. Constitution’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment.

The state will use .308-caliber Winchester 110-grain TAP Urban ammunition often found in police rifles, said Colie Rushton, the director of Security and Emergency Operations at the Corrections Department.

Why that bullet?

The round is designed to break apart as soon as it hits something firm, in this case the prisoner’s rib cage. Fragments will spread out and the intent is to destroy as much of the heart as possible.

A medical expert for the state said at the 2022 trial that if the heart is heavily damaged an inmate would lose consciousness almost immediately and likely would not feel pain. The doctor said survivors of gunshots often report first feeling like they were punched and pain only following a few seconds later.

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But a doctor testifying for inmates said it would likely take longer for an inmate to lose consciousness and that as anyone who has ever broken a rib knows, breathing becomes extremely painful once the bones in the chest are cracked.

If the aim of the executioners is not true, death could take even longer. Damaged hearts can continue to pump blood.

The information released by the state to the public gives no indication what might happen if an inmate survives the initial shots. At the 2022 trial, witnesses indicated the squad could fire again.





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South-Carolina

In ruby red South Carolina, ‘like-minded’ Democrats to meet, mobilize at annual convention

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In ruby red South Carolina, ‘like-minded’ Democrats to meet, mobilize at annual convention


Two key Democratic governors are coming to the Palmetto State to speak at the South Carolina Democratic Party’s annual two-day event in Columbia.

The 2025 event features Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, who will speak May 30 at the Palmetto Blue Dinner and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz gives the keynote address May 31.

Christale Spain, the Democratic Party state chairperson, said Moore and Walz were chosen because of their growing national presence.

She said Moore stands out because of the work he’s doing in Maryland and his emergence as a young leader among Democrats. Walz was the Democratic Party’s 2024 vice presidential nominee on the ticket with then-Vice President Kamala Harris, the nominee for president.

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The state party will select its officers for the upcoming year during the convention held at the state fairgrounds. Spain is running unopposed for chair.

Each county will also send delegates to the convention to represent their area’s interests. A total of 1,758 delegates will attend the convention.

Greenville County Democratic Party Chair Stacey Mars is attending the convention as one of the 180 delegates from Greenville County. Mars said that anyone who is a member of the state’s Democratic Party is eligible to serve as a delegate.

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She said she is excited to see Spain’s reelection because the state chair has been an active presence in county party races since taking on the leadership position.

Mars said the convention is important because it helps anyone new to the party become familiar with its platform and candidates.

“We are in the minority, so it always helps being around like-minded individuals,” Mars said.

South Carolina’s Electoral College has voted for the Republican candidate in every presidential election since 1980. Almost 60% of South Carolinians who voted in the 2024 election cast ballots for Donald Trump, according to the South Carolina Election Commission.

According to party officials, the weekend convention creates an important opportunity to strategize and expand the party’s base in the state.

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Delegates will vote on the party’s resolution and convention rules for the year. This resolution report, written by the Platform and Resolutions Committee, outlines the party’s stance on key issues.

The committee report advocates for the passage or expansion of national legislation, such as the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act or the Affordable Care Act. It also addresses topics that the party wants to see addressed on the state level, including improved access to early childhood education and an expansion of Medicaid coverage.



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Horror as families celebrating Memorial Day by South Carolina river find body

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Horror as families celebrating Memorial Day by South Carolina river find body


Families trying to enjoy the Memorial Day weekend at a South Carolina campground were shocked when a body was located nearby.

On Sunday, the Richland County Sheriff’s Department’s deputies responded to a call reporting the discovery of a dead body. The human remains were found near the Bates Bridge boat landing near Highway 601 and the Congaree River, according to local broadcaster WIS.

Olivia Holbrook told the broadcaster that she and her family were camping nearby and left their site to buy more supplies. When they returned, they found a large police presence at the nearby boat landing.

“It was tough because that’s someone’s child, that person could have kids. Somebody at the end of the day lost their child,” she told the broadcaster.

A drone flies over the waters of Congaree River in Columbia in South Carolina during adverse weather. A body was found along by the river over Memorial Day weekend.

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A drone flies over the waters of Congaree River in Columbia in South Carolina during adverse weather. A body was found along by the river over Memorial Day weekend. (AFP via Getty Images)

Holbrook said she saw many of the first responders heading down river toward a sand bar popular with visitors to the river.

“At least 20, they were filled from here and the parking lot, there was a fire truck, EMS, they put in three DNR boats and a county fire boat,” she told WIS.

When officers returned to the area near the campsite, they reportedly told her that they had discovered a body, though they did not “tell me the condition or anything until after the fact.”

She said that police advised her to get her stepson “out of here.”

The event is now under investigation by RCSD, South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, and the Columbia-Richland Fire Department, who were all present at the scene, according to ABC Columbia.

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An autopsy will be performed by the Richland County Coroner’s Office.

The Independent has requested comment from the Richland County Sheriff’s Department.



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Officer accidentally shot himself on way to call, South Carolina police say

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Officer accidentally shot himself on way to call, South Carolina police say


NORTH MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTV) – A police officer in South Carolina accidentally shot himself while responding to a call on Sunday evening.

The North Myrtle Beach officer was said to have been responding to a call in the Little River area when the wayward bullet hit him in the leg near Harbourgate Marina.

Police said the officer was taken to the hospital and was in stable condition late Sunday night.

Officials said nobody else was hurt by the errant shot.

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North Myrtle Beach police did not say what call the officer was responding to, but he was less than 10 minutes from a scene where 10 people were shot on a boat. Both the officer’s accidental shooting and the boat shooting happened around the same time. Despite the proximity of the scenes, the police department did not connect the two incidents.

Officials did not identify the officer who hurt himself.

FILE — A North Myrtle Beach police officer accidentally shot himself while responding to a call on Sunday, May 25.(Source: WMBF News)

11 hospitalized after shooting in Myrtle Beach area

Watch continuous news coverage here:

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