South-Carolina
South Carolina death row inmate asks governor for clemency
COLUMBIA, S.C. — A South Carolina inmate scheduled to be executed Friday is asking Gov. Henry McMaster to spare his life, something no governor in the state has done since the death penalty was restarted nearly 50 years ago.
Freddie Eugene Owens, 46, is set to be the first person to be executed in South Carolina in 13 years. His lawyer chose lethal injection over the firing squad or electric chair after Owens turned the decision over to her.
McMaster has said he will stick to the historic practice of announcing his decision on the phone with the prison minutes before Owens’ lethal injection is set to start.
Owens is being sent to the death chamber for the killing of Greenville convenience store clerk Irene Graves in 1997. While awaiting sentencing after being found guilty in her death, Owens killed a fellow jail inmate in a brutal attack, authorities said, Prosecutors read Owens’ confession before the two juries and judge who decided he should die. He was never tried in the inmate’s death.
Owens’ clemency request before Friday’s execution states that prosecutors never presented scientific evidence that Owens pulled the trigger when Graves was killed because she couldn’t open the store’s safe, his lawyers said in a statement.
A co-defendant who was in the store pleaded guilty and testified that Owens was the killer, but Owens’ attorneys said the other man had a secret deal with prosecutors to avoid a death sentence or life in prison.
They also said Owens was just 19 when the killing happened and that he had suffered brain damage from physical and sexual violence while in a juvenile prison.
“Because Khalil’s youth and traumas prevented him from functioning as an adult, it is unjust to punish him as one,” Owens’ lawyers said. Owens changed his name to Khalil Divine Black Sun Allah while in prison, but court records continue to refer to him as Freddie Owens.
Owens’ lawyers have not publicly released the full clemency petition.
The arguments are similar to ones the defense attorneys made last week when they asked the South Carolina Supreme Court to postpone Owens’ execution. The justices rejected them, saying either they had been argued in the past or didn’t rise to the level of stopping the execution after decades of appeals.
Owens has been sentenced to death on three separate occasions after parts of his case were overturned and his capital sentence thrown out.
Lawyers for the state Attorney General’s Office said prosecutors showed during Owens’ final sentencing hearing that the man who pulled the trigger was wearing a ski mask while the other man had a stocking mask. They then linked the ski mask to Owens.
But hanging over Owens’ case is the other killing. Before he was sentenced in Graves’ killing, Owens attacked a fellow jail inmate, Christopher Lee.
Owens gave a detailed confession about how he stabbed Lee, burned his eyes. choked and stomped him, ending by saying he did it “because I was wrongly convicted of murder,” according to the written account of an investigator.
Owens’ confession was read by prosecutors each time a jury or judge was determining whether he lived or died. He was charged with murder in Lee’s death but never taken to court. Prosecutors dropped his charges a few years ago when he ran out of appeals in Graves’s case with the right to restore them if they wanted.
In South Carolina, the governor has the lone ability to grant clemency and reduce a death sentence to life in prison. However, no governor has done that in the state’s 43 executions since the death penalty was restarted in the U.S. in 1976.
McMaster has repeatedly said that he hasn’t decided what to do in Owens’ case and that he will review any information given to him thoroughly. He says that as a former prosecutor he respects jury verdicts and court decisions,
“When the rule of law has been followed, there really is only one answer,” McMaster said.
At least five other death row inmates in South Carolina are out of appeals and the state Supreme Court has ruled they can be executed in five-week intervals.
South Carolina added yet another member to it’s OL room today with the addition of WKU Transfer Rodney Newsom Jr. He joined WKU last off-season after spending a year at Itawamba Community College after initially signing with Memphis out of high school.
Newsom Jr. played in 14 games for the Hilltoppers in 2024, and should still have at least 2 years of eligibility remaining. He originally attended Briarcrest Christian High School in Memphis and he even got some early attention from fellow SEC foe Tennessee.
In this portal cycle, Newsom heard a lot from Arkansas and Mississippi State, but the Gamecocks were able to get him over the finish line, where he joins fellow transfer Nick Sharpe as important depth pieces for an OL filled with several good high school recruiting classes, but yet to fully realize all of that potential.
With those two adds, it’s still possible the Gamecocks will kick the tires at Center before the cycle is over, but still should feel much better about it’s depth with two additions that have logged some quality snaps at the college level.
South-Carolina
Former Western Kentucky Offensive Lineman Rodney Newsom to Transfer to South Carolina
South Carolina continues to bolster its offensive line depth, as former Western Kentucky guard Rodney Newsom is expected to transfer to the Gamecocks
Newsom, who was one of the top-performing interior offensive linemen in Conference USA this season, brings experience and proven ability to the South Carolina offensive line unit. According to Pro Football Focus (PFF), Newsom earned the fourth-highest grade among all Conference USA guards in 2023 and boasted the second-highest pass-blocking grade in the conference.
Standing out with his versatility and ability to protect the quarterback, Newsom’s addition is a significant move for South Carolina as they aim to strengthen their trenches ahead of next season.
Newsom’s impact was also recognized nationally. On3 Sports recently ranked him as one of the top 10 interior offensive linemen in the transfer portal, citing his consistency, technical skill, and high ceiling.
South Carolina’s offensive line has faced challenges in recent years, but the Gamecocks have prioritized recruiting and transfer portal additions to shore up the position. With Newsom expected to join the program, he could compete for a starting role immediately and provide veteran leadership to a young and developing offensive line group.
This move also highlights South Carolina’s ability to recruit high-caliber talent from the portal, especially players who excel in specific areas like pass protection. Head coach Shane Beamer and his staff continue to address critical needs, ensuring that the team has the depth and talent necessary to compete in the SEC.
With his experience at Western Kentucky and a proven track record, Newsom has the tools to make an immediate impact in Columbia.
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South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer is probably popping bottles of champagne to celebrate his new QB addition.
Former Ohio State QB Air Noland announced Monday night that he’s taking his talents from Columbus to the Gamecocks in Columbia.
He has four years of eligibility remaining after redshirting in 2024. You can check out his official announcement below, and let me know your thoughts at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.
Air Noland transfers from Ohio State to South Carolina.
For those who might have forgotten, Air Noland was supposed to be the next big time player for the Buckeyes. Ryan Day’s staff convinced him to commit over offers from Alabama, Clemson, Miami, Ole Miss, Oregon, Texas A&M, Utah and several other major programs.
The consensus top-10 QB recruit ultimately landed with the Buckeyes, and he didn’t last long. It’s not too different from Quinn Ewers also taking a redshirt and then dipping out.
Why is he leaving? There are likely many reasons, but the Buckeyes are also grooming former five-star recruit Julian Sayin to be QB1 and five-star recruit Tavien St. Clair is a member of the incoming class. There’s only so much room for QBs on the roster, and Air Noland must have thought he was about to be the odd man out.
Former Ohio State QB Air Noland transferred to South Carolina. (Photo by Ben Jackson/Getty Images)
As for South Carolina, Beamer just landed himself a legit QB prospect with plenty of potential. The young man had so many suitors coming out of high school because he’s ridiculously talented. Now, he’s stacking up talent in the QB room.
Starting LaNorris Sellers will remain the starter in 2025 and then could end up leaving for the NFL after his redshirt sophomore season. That would mean Noland would sit for another year developing and then could be the runaway favorite to be the starting QB for Shane Beamer’s program.
It’s best to have options, and that’s exactly what the South Carolina coach now has.
South Carolina coach Shane Beamer added Air Noland to his QB room. (Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)
What do you think of the transfer addition? Let me know at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.
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