Police: Rock Hill lawyer shot, killed by son in Spartanburg

York County lawyers who deal with killings in court all the time are reeling after one of their own – prominent Rock Hill criminal defense attorney O. Cyrus Hinton – was shot and killed Sunday night at his Spartanburg home.

His son has been charged with murder.

Oshyn Cyrus Hinton, 47, known as Cyrus, was shot once in the back of the head, deputies in Spartanburg County said.

Osiris Hinton, 23, is charged with murder and possession of a weapon in a violent crime. The motive for the shooting remains unclear.

“I killed my father! I killed my father!” Osiris Hinton told officers when they arrived at the family’s Eastview Drive home about 7 p.m., according to a Spartanburg County sheriff’s report.

The killing of Hinton – known for his sharp legal mind, quick wit and generous nature, while demanding a fair shake for all people – has left his colleagues saddened and stunned.

“A horrible loss, the loss of one of our brightest,” said Twana Burris-Alcide, a Rock Hill lawyer and former York County Bar Association president who was one of Hinton’s closest friends in legal circles. “This is a man who mentored young men, cared about them, wanted them to have success in life.

“He cared about his clients. He wanted to make a difference, and he did.”

Hinton, a member of Omega Psi Phi fraternity, was active in teen programs intended to give young men opportunities. He mentored law students during summer breaks.

“Cyrus Hinton was a brilliant man,” Burris-Alcide said. “A bright light has been extinguished.”

Hinton had operated his practice since 2000 from an office on Rock Hill’s Main Street, but he handled cases across the region – from Lancaster to Spartanburg to Chester and Charlotte.

“Cyrus was not just a great lawyer, he was a great man,” said Leah Moody, a lawyer with a practice in the same building as Hinton’s. “This is terrible and shocking.”

Most recently, Hinton had signed on to represent Christopher Moore, one of five alleged gang members charged in connection with the November killing of Chester City Councilman Odell Williams; Moore is accused of shooting Williams.

Hinton also represented Marqueas Buchanan, one of three Chester teens charged in 2013 with murder for hire in the death of Jimmie Paul, who worked in the Chester County Clerk of Court’s office.

Hearings in both cases, scheduled for later this week, have been postponed as both prosecutors and defense lawyers joined Monday to deal with the loss of one of their own.

Hinton’s death is the third killing of a York County defense lawyer in the past five years. Melvin Roberts was strangled in 2010, and Michael Howe was shot to death in 2011.

“We are all shocked and saddened,” said 16th Circuit Solicitor Kevin Brackett. “This is terrible. Cyrus was a great guy and a great attorney. He was affable and, as lawyers must do, he fought for his clients. A real professional.”

Hinton worked as a social services lawyer advocate for indigent clients in cases involving abuse and neglect of children, alongside fellow Rock Hill lawyer Nathan Sheldon. The two worked together on hundreds of cases, Sheldon said, and Hinton was a “phenomenal” lawyer who was a mentor and fierce advocate for the poor, the accused and people without hope.

Hinton’s clients often “had no one else to stand up for them” except Hinton, Sheldon said.

In 1998, Hinton started his career in the York County Public Defender’s Office, working for Chief Public Defender Harry Dest.

“Cyrus was dedicated to to making sure all people were treated fairly from the start,” Dest said. “This was a man who, right from day one, we all knew was going to have a great career.”

Hinton was not only a terrific lawyer but a “terrific man,” said Deputy Public Defender B.J. Barrowclough. Prosecutors and lawyers deal with death daily, but news of Hinton’s death stopped lawyers in courthouses in York, Chester and Lancaster counties.

“The guy was a prince, a gentleman, a tough lawyer in the courtroom and a great guy outside the courtroom,” Barrowclough said.

“This is like a punch right in the gut.”

Hinton was born in Ohio. He graduated from Winston-Salem State University in North Carolina and the University of Richmond School of Law.

This story was originally published April 13, 2015 at 11:15 AM with the headline "Police: Rock Hill lawyer shot, killed by son in Spartanburg."