Man, 19, boy, 13, name each other in fatal Fort Mill shooting. Both still jailed
Evidence against a Rock Hill 19-year-old, one of two young people accused in a shocking killing in a South Carolina town that hasn’t had a murder in years, shows he could be the shooter, prosecutors said in court Thursday.
Both suspects in the killing at a Fort Mill park — the other is 13 years old — have pointed the finger at the other as the shooter in the August death of Johnny Wayne Martin Cook, 21, of Chester.
Jalen Daquavious Thames, 19, appeared in York County criminal court Thursday. His lawyer sought bail to get Thames out of jail following his arrest days after the shooting. He is charged with murder, conspiracy, armed robbery, and two weapons charges.
Thames’ palm print was found on the rear passenger door of the vehicle from which the fatal shots came, prosecutor John Anthony said.
“Some forensic evidence points at Mr. Thames to being the shooter,” Anthony told Judge Bill McKinnon.
Thames also confessed to a plot to rob Cook of a gun by giving his own firearm to the 13-year-old to use in the robbery, according to prosecutors.
Police and prosecutors say the 13-year-old claimed Thames fired the gun; Thames alleges the younger boy killed Cook.
The lawyer for the 13-year-old said in a previous court hearing that Thames has tried to blame the younger boy for the killing, yet the evidence points to Thames as the shooter.
However, even as the suspects blame each other, prosecutors say that under South Carolina law, both participated in the killing and the plot to rob Cook, so each rightly faces a murder charge no matter which one pulled the trigger.
The crime: Drug deal, then robbery and killing
Prosecutors say Thames and the 13-year-old had bought marijuana from Cook earlier Aug. 28 and saw he had a handgun they wanted to steal. They hatched a scheme to meet up with him again that night under the pretense of buying more marijuana, then plotted to steal Cook’s gun using another gun that Thames already had, according to Anthony.
Text messages between Thames and Cook detail the plan to meet that night for the drug deal, and Cook and the two suspects were caught together on video at a nearby QT store minutes before Cook was shot at Steele Street Park, prosecutors say.
Thames took Cook’s handgun after the killing and tried to sell it before he was arrested, Anthony said. He first denied involvement to police, claiming he was at a swimming pool at the time Cook died.
Thames has “undisputed involvement” in the incident, including arming the 13-year-old for the robbery, Anthony said.
Defense: Thames at 19 is still ‘a child’
Thames has been in jail for almost three months since the killing. He did not speak in court Thursday.
His lawyer, Todd Rutherford of Columbia, argued Thursday that Thames has no prior record and gave police a statement “that indicated he is not the shooter.”
Rutherford said he and his client acknowledge the loss to Cook’s family. But as the case stands, Thames stands only accused at the moment.
Rutherford asked that Thames be released to family with a GPS monitor and house arrest as the case moves forward.
“Right now, in this preliminary stage, this is a child who stands in front of your honor, with no prior record, no prior adjudications in Family Court, and nothing indicates he is a flight risk or a danger to anyone,” Rutherford argued.
Judge: Thames a danger to the public
Although Rutherford called Thames a child, the law is different. Thames, who was 18 at the time of the killing, is an adult under South Carolina law.
Police, prosecutors and Cook’s family told the judge Thursday that Thames is a danger to the public if released. Fort Mill, a town of more than 20,000 people between Rock Hill and Charlotte, is among America’s fast-growing communities. It has not had a fatal shooting in years, police said.
McKinnon denied Thames bail.
“Even in your client’s own words, at best he planned out a robbery and provided a gun to a 13-year-old who then murdered the victim,” McKinnon told Rutherford. “And then the state believes (Thames) may be the shooter. I find he is a danger to the community.”
What happens now?
Both Thames and the 13-year-old, who is also from Rock Hill, remain jailed.
A Family Court judge denied the younger boy bail in September; he remains in S.C. Department of Juvenile Justice custody. Prosecutors are seeking to try the 13-year-old as an adult. If they succeed in trying to move him to adult court, the 13-year-old would be the youngest person ever in York County to face an adult murder trial.
The lawyer for the 13-year-old has said she will fight prosecutors’ push to have him face charges as an adult.
Murder carries 30 years to life for an adult conviction in South Carolina. Any sentence for a conviction in juvenile court ends at age 22.
No trial dates have been set.
