SC man gets 15 years in plea deal after killing near Rock Hill. Kidnapping charges dropped
A Rock Hill man will spend most of the next 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter in a fatal shooting.
Visiting S.C. Circuit Court Judge Paul Burch on Tuesday sentenced Stephen Josiah Brooks, 34, to the maximum of 15 years under a negotiated plea deal in the May 2023 death of Richard Crank Jr., 32.
Burch could have sentenced Brooks to anywhere from two to 15 years under the plea deal in York County criminal court court at the Moss Justice Center. Brooks was initially charged with murder.
Prosecutors said in court Brooks shot Crank after an altercation between the two at a Faires Road house south of Rock Hill. Brooks told deputies he went there to get his hair braided. Crank was unarmed, prosecutors said.
Brooks gets credit for 340 days in jail since his arrest after the killing. He must serve at least 85% of the sentence because there is no parole for voluntary manslaughter.
Prosecutors: Defendant brought a gun
Brooks claimed self-defense when he spoke to deputies at the scene, 16th Circuit Deputy Solicitor John Anthony said in court. Yet Brooks shot Crank, then took pictures at the scene and covered the body with blankets, Anthony said.
“If the defendant hadn’t brought a gun, none of this would have happened,” Anthony said in court.
Two of Crank’s family members asked Burch for the maximum of 15 years.
Anthony and assistant deputy solicitor Chris Epting prosecuted the case. The plea deal took into account the chaotic scene at the house and the argument between Brooks and Crank, Anthony said.
Defense: Other charges dropped; ‘Boils down to a matter of seconds’
Kidnapping allegations involving other people in the house and a weapons charge were all dismissed, said Brooks’ lawyer, 16th Circuit Deputy Public Defender Ryan Newkirk.
Newkirk asked for a sentence of single-digit years. Newkirk said Crank was twice Brooks’ size and Brooks had been assaulted first.
“This incident boils down to a matter of seconds between two people in a hallway in a small house,” Newkirk told Burch.
Brooks did not speak in court, except to plead guilty under what is called an Alford plea. In an Alford plea, a defendant does not have to admit guilt, yet accepts that there is a likelihood of conviction if the case went to trial. The defendant also must receive a benefit — the plea agreement down from murder had a cap of 15 years in prison for voluntary manslaughter. Murder carries 30 years to life for a conviction.
