A new agency could be investigating the deadly 2023 road rage shooting of a 33-year-old North Carolina man involving a North Myrtle Beach business owner.
Horry County鈥檚 top administrator Barry Spivey asked on Thursday, April 17, that the State Law Enforcement Division reopen the deadly shooting case, which SLED had previously closed and the S.C. Attorney General's Office said it would not prosecute.
In a separate letter Thursday, Horry County Council Chairman Johnny Gardner asked South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster to find an outside agency to investigate the case, citing an apparent conflict on interest.
Spivey in his letter said SLED has recently indicated that it is not the primary investigating agency of the deadly road rage shooting on Camp Swamp Road in the Loris area on Sept. 9, 2023, which killed Scott Spivey of Tabor City, North Carolina. Weldon Boyd, owner of Buoys on the Boulevard, and Kenneth Williams were in a vehicle behind Spivey when the shooting happened.
The county administrator said questions about the case continue to circulate 鈥渨ith renewed national media interest.鈥澛燞e asked SLED to reopen the case as the primary investigative authority and lead agency.
Horry County Police Department initially investigated the case, but it was given to SLED in the days following the shooting. The S.C. Attorney General鈥檚 Office was handed the case by the 15th Circuit Solicitor's Office on Sept. 15, 2023, after Solicitor Jimmy Richardson said Boyd posted a thank-you note on Facebook to the solicitor's office and police department. Richardson said he did not believe there was a conflict, but did not want to be in a position where there is an appearance of impropriety.听
The Attorney General鈥檚 Office later said there was 鈥渋nsufficient evidence鈥 for criminal prosecution.听
Gardner later said in his Thursday letter to McMaster the police department and solicitor鈥檚 office felt there was 鈥渁n apparent conflict of interest鈥 with Boyd, which prompted HCPD to ask SLED investigate.
鈥淯nfortunately, yesterday it was brought to our attention that SLED is now maintaining the position that they have not been the lead investigating agency on this case,鈥 he wrote. 鈥淭his concerns us because we still have the apparent conflict of interest and we are of the opinion that HCPD should not investigate the case.鈥
Letters sent by Gardner and Barry Spivey come the same day the police department sent a statement to the Wall Street Journal, which requested the department answer more than 60 questions and prompts related to the shooting and former HCPD deputy chief Brandon Strickland who resigned in March after nearly 20 years with the department.
Days after his resignation, SLED said聽it was investigating Strickland for misconduct allegations聽related to the investigation into the death of Scott Spivey. The news came after HCPD Chief Kris Leonhardt had announced the department requested SLED and the FBI聽review the road rage shooting case.
In an email MyHorry糖心vlog官方入口 obtained, a Wall Street Journal reporter said the publication had acquired more than seven hours of phone calls recorded by Boyd, along with other discovery material associated with a wrongful-death lawsuit filed by Scott Spivey's family. The questions detail specific conversations in the aftermath of the shooting, including what was said in phone calls between Boyd and Strickland. MyHorry糖心vlog官方入口 has not obtained the recordings.
Strickland had been pictured with Boyd on occasion, including a picture together on a hunting trip and after Boyd donated tactical belts to the department.
No charges were filed against Boyd or Williams in connection with the shooting of Spivey. A wrongful death lawsuit was filed against Boyd and Williams by Spivey鈥檚 family. That case is pending.
The September 2023 shooting happened on Camp Swamp Road near Longs.
The shooting appeared to be 鈥渁n isolated incident,鈥 the coroner's office reported at the time, and was being investigated by Horry County Police Department immediately after.
An Horry County police report states an officer was dispatched about 6:04 p.m. after reports of 鈥渟hots fired with both parties on scene鈥 at the intersection of Camp Swamp Road and Highway 9 in the Longs area.
The driver of a white Dodge truck said a man in a black Chevrolet truck jumped out and started shooting toward his vehicle, a police report states. The driver told police he shot back and thought the man in the black truck was dead, the report states.
The driver of the white truck and a passenger gave their guns to police at the scene.
Police said the driver's door was open on the black truck, and Spivey was hunched over the center console and showed no signs of life. The report states police discovered a black handgun with the slide locked under his hand.
The Horry County Coroner's Office on Tuesday, April 22, confirmed Spivey's body was transported in his vehicle to a covered and secure location at the HCPD impound yard because inclement weather was expected.
"This allowed the Deputy Coroner, the crime scene officers and detectives to carefully and methodically remove all evidence from the vehicle without the threat of weather complicating the process," deputy coroner Tamara Willard said in an email. "The Coroner鈥檚 Office will periodically permit transport of a decedent in a vehicle when it is necessary, though it is rare. The decision to transport a decedent in a vehicle is not taken lightly, this is a collaborative conversation in which all investigating agencies agree, based upon the case at hand.
"Some of the reasons for such a decision include the need to preserve evidence, severe or impending weather issues, the condition of a decedents body, etc," she wrote.
Spivey鈥檚 cause of death was gunshot wounds and the manner of death was ruled a homicide. The coroner's office said no other information will be released unless the case is reopened.
(4) comments
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After reading the full story, https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14626395/scott-spivey-death-recordings-truth-stand-ground-case.html
Boyd definitely did it and the Horry County police covered it up. Can we trust the Horry County Police department and the higher ups (Brass). I鈥檓 sure they knew of this cover up and straight up murder. Just a bunch of good ole boys. People should boycott Boyd and his businesses.
How do you come to the conclusion that he did it? What part of the article you link to is evidence that he鈥檚 guilty?
Definitely Boyd killer鈥 hope he goes to trail, if I was on the jury. Guilty鈥 Life in prison.
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