Boyfriend on probation denied bond in shooting death of Lancaster child; mom’s bond set

The mother of the 2-year-old killed Monday night in Lancaster charged with hindering the police investigation into the child’s death remains jailed after receiving a $60,000 bond.

Toni Lashay Gladden, 26, was charged with misprision of a felony after Jacarion Gladden was shot in the chest at the family home at 509. E. Dunlap St. in Lancaster. Gladden also is charged with felony unlawful conduct toward a child.

However, Gladden’s boyfriend, Shazeem Hayes, 18, also charged with unlawful conduct toward a child, was denied bond. Gladden is on probation from a 2016 conviction for weapons and burglary, according to court records and probation officials. Hayes pleaded guilty to the charges in August of 2016 after an arrest in April 2016 and received 18 months probation and a Youthful Offender Act sentence of up to five years, said Pete O’Boyle, spokesman for the S.C. Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services.

Probation officers already have been assigned the case and arrest warrants against Hayes for an alleged violation of probation are pending, O’Boyle said.

It remains unclear if state or federal prosecutors will seek weapons charges against Hayes, who by state and federal law as a convicted felon is barred from possessing a firearm or ammunition.

Police said the shooting was “not an intentional act,” but have refused to give specifics about what led to the shooting.

Lancaster Police Chief Scott Grant has declined to say who fired the shot that killed Jacarion Gladden, or what circumstances led to the shot being fired. More, Grant has declined to say what specifically Toni Gladden told police about the shooting that led to the charge alleging she hampered the investigation initially after police responded to the shooting scene and to a hospital in Lancaster.

Both Gladden and Hayes claimed to be indigent and applied for a public defender. Hayes has been assigned 6th Circuit assistant public defender Ryan Payne, but efforts to reach Payne Wednesday were unsuccessful.

Gladden will likely be conflicted out to be represented by a private lawyer who contracts with the public defender’s office, court officials said.

This story was originally published August 2, 2017 at 10:28 AM with the headline "Boyfriend on probation denied bond in shooting death of Lancaster child; mom’s bond set."