By Stan Welch
South Carolina Attorney General issued a letter to SLED Chief Mark Keel in mid-December, in reference to an officer involved shooting which occurred on Tuesday, August 11, of 2020.
The letter was in response to an investigation of that shooting, which involved Anderson County deputies, and which led to the death of K-9 officer Roscoe to friendly fire. The incident began when a deputy initiated a traffic stop on Clemson Boulevard. The two subjects in the vehicle refused to stop and drove off in a dangerous and erratic manner, causing the ACSO deputy to terminate the pursuit. The car was subsequently located near the Lowe’s store.
The two subjects fled on foot, climbing a steep hill and entering a dark wooded area. Roscoe pursued and was heard to be engaged with one of the subjects. Deputies saw a male silhouette and observed a muzzle flash from a gun. They returned fore, striking both human subjects as well as K-9 Roscoe. Twenty two year old Bryan Keith Martin was later determined to have taken his own life, while the sixteen year old suspect a female, was transported. Her identity is protected due to her juvenile status.
Sherif Chad McBride, in keeping with the protocols for an officer involved shooting, asked SLED to investigate, which they did. They submitted the results of their investigation to AG Wilson, who determined that the deputies used lawful and appropriate force in response to the situation, which McBride described as ‘combat”. The letter was recently released , along with a statement by McBride. He states that as of January 15, no documents related to a civil suit against his department have been received.
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