Missing Woman "Chained Up Like A Dog" Found Alive After Police Search For Suspected Serial Killer

Story out of Woodruff, South Carolina:

4,000 people, dozens of investigators gathered at the scene where the 30-year-old Brown was found “chained up like a dog.”

Kala Brown, who was chained inside a metal container for two months, said she watched captor Todd Kohlhepp shoot her boyfriend Charles Carver and kill him, according to a testimony Friday during a bond hearing.

Brown of Anderson, S.C., had been held captive for two months in this area about 80 miles northwest of the state capital of Columbia. But Spartanburg County Sheriff Chuck Wright is worried that four bodies could be buried somewhere near the shipping container where she was kept.

Brown's boyfriend, Charles Carver, 32, remained missing as the sun rose. And investigators feared Thursday that they were dealing with a serial killer as they combed over a fenced property of nearly 100 acres where they were told bear traps may be laid.

Deputies arrested Todd Christopher Kohlhepp, 45, of Moore, S.C., on Thursday as they were executing a search warrant as part of a missing persons investigation with Anderson police. The real-estate broker owns the property though he lives about nine miles away. Cont.

Story from - USA Today

"Make America Great Again" - Christian Couple In Lieu Of Tip Leaves Server Letter Telling Her 'A Woman's Place Is In The Home'

Story out of Greenville, South Carolina: 

A South Carolina server said she feels heartbroken and mortified after the tip she received from a couple she had served told her that her place is in the home.

The server who asked not to be identified said she had just finished clearing off the couple’s table after serving them when the couple walked back in and left her a note on a napkin and darted out the door.

What the napkin said angered her friend so much she submitted a picture of the napkin to FOX Carolina. The napkin read in its entirety:

Thank you for your excellent service today – you’re a good waitress.

"Here’s your tip:

The woman's place is in the home. Your place is in the home. It even says so in the Bible. You may think that you're contributing to your household by coming into work, but you're not. While you're in here 'working' this is the reason your husband must see another woman on his way home from a long day at his work. Because you should be home taking care of the household duties, you may think what you are doing 'working' is right, it is really essentially a disgrace to his manhood and to the American family. So instead of coming to your 'job' and looking for handouts to feed your family, how's about going home and cleaning your house and cooking a hot meal for your husband and children, the way your husband and God intended, and help make America great again (fucking Trump). Praying for families and our nation.

Love, (Guests' last name)" Cont.

Story from - Live 5 News/Fox Carolina

4 Dead In Murder-Suicide Including 2-Year-Old

Story out of Bucksport, South, Carolina:

Authorities in South Carolina say that a fourth person — a 2-year-old child — has died in an apparent murder-suicide near Myrtle Beach.

Horry County Chief Deputy Coroner Tamara Willard tells local media that three people were found shot to death early Saturday in a home in rural Bucksport. They were 51-year-old Keith Davis; 40-year-old Kristina Burroughs and 10-month-old Justice Burroughs, who was Kristina Burroughs' niece.

Willard says a fourth victim died Sunday afternoon in a local hospital. She is identified as 2-year-old Katylin Bellamy.

All four lived together. Cont.

Story from - ABC News

Mother Arrested After Young Son Spotted Walking Around Lost On Highway

                  


Story out of Kershaw County, South Carolina: 

A Kershaw County woman is facing charges of unlawful neglect of a child after her four-year-old child was found walking down a highway by himself.

Officers arrested 23-year-old Taquanna Salkie Thomas and booked her at the Kershaw County jail.

Early Monday morning, an off-duty law enforcement officer called 9-1-1 after he said the boy knocked on his door. The boy told the officer he couldn't find his parents.

Deputies say the boy was in good health and was well taken care of, but they took him to the hospital to be evaluated, and he was taken into protective care by social services. Around 1:45 a.m., dispatch got a call that Thomas had shown up at the Blaney Fire Department trying to find her son. Officers say the woman told them that she was driving around to get her son to sleep, but became sleepy herself, and pulled off on U.S. 1. and fell asleep. She said she eventually woke up, and when she did, she saw that her child was missing.

She said when she couldn't find the boy, she drove home to get her driver's license, then went to the fire station.

The deputy who responded to the fire station then took her into custody. Cont.

Story from - WLTX

Father Kills 2-Year-Old And Injures 4-Year-Old While 'Making His Gun Safe'

Story out of Richland County, South Carolina:

A South Carolina father told police he was attempting to “make his gun safe” when he accidentally fired the weapon Thursday evening, killing his 2-year-old daughter and injuring her 4-year-old sister.

The bullet struck Heaven Miller in her “upper body,” according to a statement released by police.

Deputies who responded to the Richland County residence attempted to keep the toddler alive by applying pressure to the wound and doing chest compressions as they waited for an ambulance, according to a sheriff’s department incident report cited by the State newspaper.

Richland County Coroner Gary Watts told the paper that Miller was transported to Palmetto Health Richland hospital, where she was pronounced dead several minutes after her arrival.

Watts told the paper that the same bullet also struck Miller’s older sister in the upper body. The child’s injury required surgery but is not considered life-threatening, he said.

The 30-year-old father, who has not been named by police, also suffered a wound to his hand when the gun went off, police said. He was on the porch of his residence at the Meredith Square apartments with his daughters when the shot was fired, according to CBS affiliate WLTX.

The State reported that the father was cleaning his gun when it misfired. “Right now, it just looks like an accidental shooting,” Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott told the paper. Cont.

Story from - The Washington Post

"Pure Sadness" - Millions Of Bees Killed In South Carolina

On Sunday morning, the South Carolina honey bees began to die in massive numbers.

Death came suddenly to Dorchester County, S.C. Stressed insects tried to flee their nests, only to surrender in little clumps at hive entrances. The dead worker bees littering the farms suggested that colony collapse disorder was not the culprit — in that odd phenomenon, workers vanish as though raptured, leaving a living queen and young bees behind.

Instead, the dead heaps signaled the killer was less mysterious, but no less devastating. The pattern matched acute pesticide poisoning. By one estimate, at a single apiary — Flowertown Bee Farm and Supply, in Summerville — 46 hives died on the spot, totaling about 2.5 million bees.

Walking through the farm, one Summerville woman wrote on Facebook, was “like visiting a cemetery, pure sadness.”

A Clemson University scientist collected soil samples from Flowertown on Tuesday, according to WCBD-TV, to further investigate the cause of death. But to the bee farmers, the reason is already clear. Their bees had been poisoned by Dorchester’s own insecticide efforts, casualties in the war on disease-carrying mosquitoes. Cont.

Story from - The Washington Post

'Clowns Were In The Playground' - Multiple Clowns Spotted In South Carolina Woods

Story out of Greenville County, South Carolina:

There have been two separate clown sightings in Greenville County, according to the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office.

The first incident happened on Sunday, August 21st, and involved kids seeing clowns in the woods bordering the Fleetwood Manor apartment complex.

The complainant stated that the clowns were holding green lasers and cash in their hands, in an attempt to lure the children into the woods.

The Sheriff’s Office received another call from a young girl on Monday, August 29th, about a clown sighting on White Horse Road.

The girl stated that she saw a man taking pictures of kids, and shortly after, saw a man dressed as a clown and coming out of the woods.

Greenville City Dispatch responded to another report of a clown sighting at Shemwood Crossing on Shemwood Lane Tuesday night.

A resident at the apartment complex confronted the clown, and the clown reportedly left in a car, according to the Greenville Police Department.

Our crew on the scene talked to a couple of residents who said they ran after the clowns after kids told them clowns were by the playground. Cont.

Story from - WSPA

Mother Kills Her 4-Day-Old After Putting Him In Refrigerator

Story out of Colombia, South Carolina:

Angela Blackwell, 27, was arrested by State Law Enforcement Division agents on Monday on a charge of homicide by child abuse after a lengthy investigation. She could face life in prison if convicted. Sheriff's Chief Deputy Robert Sprouse said he didn't know if she had an attorney.

Deputies said Blackwell put her 4-day-old son in her refrigerator and shut the door for three hours before taking him out and seeking medical attention on February 27.

First-responders tried to revive him, but he was pronounced dead at a hospital. An autopsy showed that the boy, William David Blackwell, died from hypothermia with asphyxiation from being placed in the cold, according to Chester County Coroner Terry Tinker.

According to an online obituary for her infant son, Blackwell has another child. A Facebook profile that appears to belong to Blackwell shows her posing with a toddler and a newborn in photos posted the day after William's birth. Cont.

Story from - CTV/AP

Mother Charged With Homicide After Feeding Her Baby Salt

Story out of Spartanburg, South Carolina:

A 17-month-old baby, who was hospitalized after being poisoned with a teaspoon of salt, has died, according to the Spartanburg County Coroner.

Deputies say Kimberly Martines, 23, has been charged with homicide by child abuse after feeding her baby, Peyton, a teaspoon of salt.

Martines gave Peyton salt to try to win back the baby’s father, according to prosecutors. The solicitor says the two are separated and the children were living with Martines.

Solicitor Barry Barnette said he, “found out that she fed her child a teaspoon of salt, then had her follow through with a drink after that. She basically did that to try and get her husband’s attention – to get him back into her life.”

Martines stated she was awakened when her baby started screaming, according to an incident report. She told deputies the baby was hot and appeared to be having seizures.

Medical staff told deputies that the baby had suffered from acute intoxication of salt, and the baby’s sodium levels showed signs of salt poisoning.

Peyton died at the hospital Wednesday afternoon. Cont.

Story from - WSPA

2 Soldiers Fondly Remembered After Being Killed While Helping Woman

Story out of Chapin, South Carolina:

Tributes continue to come in for two local soldiers killed at a Lake Murray bar who witnesses say were trying to help a woman who was being attacked.

Deputies say 40-year-old Staff Sergeant Charles Allen Judge Jr. and 29-year-old Sergeant First Class Jonathan Michael Prins were both shot and killed by 25-year-old Joseph Elijah Mills outside the Frayed Knot Bar & Grill on Dreher Island Road early Sunday morning.

Mills left the scene after the killings, but was eventually captured late Sunday afternoon, officers said. At a hearing Monday, he was denied bond.

Justin Brooks, the owner of Frayed Knot, said Mills was kicking and hitting the victim on the ground. A group of people threw him off her, and while he was on the ground, he fired shots into the air.

"When [Judge and Prins] get in within two feet of him—they both have their hands up trying to talk to him—and he just shoots them in cold blood," Brooks said. And then just walks off like nothing happened. Walked off like he was shopping at Walmart, right down the aisle. Put a shirt over his head so people couldn’t see him and just walked right off.

"They are definitely heroes," he added. Cont. (Video/Autoplay)

Story from - WLTX

Mother Drowns Baby In Outlet Mall's Pond

Story out of Columbia, South Carolina:

Authorities say a North Carolina woman drowned her 6-week-old baby in a pond at an outlet mall in Myrtle Beach.

Horry County Police charged 24-year-old Jameisha Alexander of Carrboro, North Carolina, with murder Monday.

An arrest warrant says someone saw Alexander holding her son King near the pond Saturday night, but by the time security arrived, the baby was in the water. An autopsy found the baby drowned. The warrant says Alexander was arrested after crashing her car two hours later.

Alexander's mother and grandmother told The Associated Press she was overwhelmed with her first baby, but that she loved her boy.

Her mother, Sandra Jones, says the baby's father was abusive and didn't support Alexander. She says Alexander was being seen for depression before and after her son's birth. Cont.

Story from - Fox News/AP
Image from - hannah k - Flickr

Skydiver Dies After Midair Collision

Story out of Chester County, South Carolina:

A skydiver fell about 14,000 feet to his death after colliding in the air with a second diver Saturday evening in Chester County, S.C.

Searchers found the body of Bond Springer, 32, of Boca Raton, Fla., just before 9 a.m. Sunday in a wooded area near Skydive Carolina, on King Air Drive, near Chester Municipal Airport.

“Our community is saddened by the loss of a community member and choose to take this time to remember him quietly,” a Skydive Carolina spokesman wrote in an email in response to a request for an interview.

Springer and a second diver jumped from a plane in wing suits during the annual CarolinaFest skydiving festival, according to a report from the Chester County Sheriff’s Office. Both were experienced skydivers, according to a statement from Skydive Carolina.

The second skydiver, Avalon Wolf, released his main parachute after the collision, Skydive Carolina’s report said. Wolf suffered a severe broken leg when he landed, according to the reports. Cont.

Story from - The Charlotte Observer

Man Granted Bail After Killing Two Intruders, Burning, Burying Bodies

Story out of Moncks Corner, South Carolina:

A Goose Creek resident panicked earlier this year after fatally shooting two intruders in his home, so he burned and buried their bodies in his backyard instead of calling police, his attorney said.

James Edward Loftis’ eagerness to make the self-defense argument in court helped sway a judge Monday to grant bail to the 39-year-old as he prepares for trial on a pair of murder charges.

Loftis was expected to post $250,000 bail and be freed sometime this week, said his attorney, Stephen Harris of Charleston.

The case poses new questions about the S.C. Protection of Persons and Property Act, a “stand your ground” law that gives homeowners the right in many circumstances to use deadly force against people breaking into their houses. Cont.

Story from - The Post And Courier

"I Don't Do Black Hair" - Barber Threatens Black Man

Story out of Rock Hill, South Carolina:

Denied service because of his race, a man says not only did a barber refuse to give him a cut because he was black, but he displayed a gun.

Larry Thomas, 65, was arrested and charged with pointing and presenting firearms at a person.

"I asked him does he shave, Can I have a shave?'" said Arthur Hill, of Fort Mill.

"He said, 'I don't do black hair," Hill recalled. "I asked him does he shave, can he shave me, and he said,"I don't do black hair."

Hill says he asked Thomas to clarify why he couldn't get a cut.

"I  said, 'Are you referring to African American hair?' He said, 'Yeah,' and at the time I noticed he already had his hand gripped on a .38 snub nose chrome revolver."

Hill says he told Thomas he didn't want any trouble and left, but he contacted the York County Sheriff's Office.

"I was shocked, I was shocked for my life, because I'm thinking that could've been me laying on the floor dead," he said. "He did not point it at me, but it was  clear in sight like he meant business." Cont. (Video/Autoplay)

Story from - WCNC

Idiot Charged After His Gun Discharged At Children's Swim Meet

The responsible gun owners just ooze responsibility. Story out of Charleston, South Carolina:

A Charleston man is charged with a misdemeanor after his gun discharged during a children’s swim lesson session at the University of Charleston on Friday evening.

Lloyd Simms, 41, turned himself in to the Charleston Police Department Saturday morning, said Chief of Detectives Steve Cooper.

Jackie Kay, of Charleston, whose 17-year-old daughter was giving the lesson, said the incident happened at the Gorman PE Building on the UC campus during a swim lesson. Kay’s daughter was in the pool with several children while parents were around the pool watching.

“This man was sitting not two feet away and his gun went off,” Kay said. “She said he had a huge hole in his pocket.

“Everyone was upset. It could have been a terrible tragedy for many people.” Cont.

Story from - Charleston Gazette-Mail
Image from - PDP

Woman Fearing The 'Rapture' Crashes Car Into Walmart

Story out of Camden, South Carolina:

A Camden woman told police "God told her to do it" after they say she crashed her car into the Walmart.

According to the incident report, the driver "was standing in the middle of the crowd and was screaming and causing a huge disturbance."

The woman told the officer "The 'rapture' was coming and that 'God told her to do it,'" the incident report reads.

Crystal Marshall, 34, was charged with malicious injury to real property and disorderly conduct.

"Marshall later admitted to intentionally driving the Ford into the building," says the incident report. Cont.

Story from - WISTV
Image from - YouTube

"We Are Standing United" - San Francisco Mayor Bars City Workers’ From Traveling To North Carolina

San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee on Friday said he is banning city employees from traveling to North Carolina on public business after the state passed a law limiting transgender rights.

“We are standing united as San Franciscans to condemn North Carolina’s new discriminatory law that turns back the clock on protecting the rights of all Americans including lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals,” Lee said in a statement. “Effective immediately, I am directing City Departments under my authority to bar any publicly-funded City employee travel to the State of North Carolina that is not absolutely essential to public health and safety.” Cont.

Story from - The Washington Post
Image from - Wikimedia Commons
cc 2.0

Lawmakers Celebrating Raw Milk Law Get Sick After Drinking Raw Milk

Story out of Charleston, South Carolina:

Some West Virginia lawmakers and Capitol staffers had a very bad weekend after drinking raw milk to celebrate a law loosening restrictions on the product. Now state health officials are investigating whether the milk was to blame for their fever, vomiting and diarrhea, and weighing allegations the raw-milk party broke the law.

So far, state and county health officials say they haven’t received medical reports of illnesses related to the dangerous bacteria that can live in raw milk, which include Campylobacter, Listeria, Salmonella and E. Coli. The lawmaker involved, Del. Scott Cadle, who also stayed home sick on Monday, blames his and other illnesses on an unrelated stomach virus circulating the Capitol.

Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin signed a bill last Thursday that will let people share milk-producing animals and drink raw milk if people sign a document acknowledging the health risks, and if the animals have passed health tests within the previous year. The law, which takes effect in late May, maintains selling and distribution bans. Selling or even offering raw milk is illegal and still will be, subject to fines of $50 to $500, unless the new requirements are met. Cont.

Story from - Global
Image from - YouTube

Toddler Calls 911 For Help Getting Dressed

Story out of Greenville County, South Carolina:

When you’re two years old, it’s usually a challenge to pick a favorite toy or a color to draw with. For little Aliyah, dressing herself proved to be a downright emergency. It was so much so, she called on Greenville’s finest, Wednesday, to help her with her pants.

“Dispatch actually gave us a call and they said it sounded like a baby on the phone and it was basically a 911 hang up call,” said Deputy Martha Lohnes.

Lohnes was sent to investigate.

“The door opened up and she comes running out to the front with half a pant leg on and she’s just like “HEY,” said Lohnes.

“I just ended up sitting down on the stairs helping her put on the rest of her pants and then it was almost like a reward, she just wanted a hug,” she explained. Cont. (Video)

Story from - WSPA

Woman Arrested In Hospital Dies A Day Later In Jail

Story out of Charleston County, South Carolina:

A woman who was arrested at a hospital over the summer for failing to pay court fines died the next day because she was deprived of water at the Charleston County jail, her family’s attorneys said Wednesday.

Joyce Curnell, 50, of Edisto Island was found dead in the jail shortly before 5 p.m. July 22, a day after being taken from Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital, where she had been treated for a stomach illness.

She spent the last 27 hours of her life behind bars. During that time she became too sick to eat or call for help, according to court documents filed this week. She vomited all night and couldn’t make it to a bathroom, so jailers gave her a trash bag. Some medical staffers ignored the jail officials’ requests to tend to her, the documents alleged.

Curnell’s family filed a notice Wednesday to sue the jail’s medical contractor, Carolina Center for Occupational Health, for malpractice. Unless a settlement is reached, a lawsuit likely will follow. The filing cited expert opinion from a local doctor, who said Curnell’s death “more likely than not” would have been prevented if she had been properly treated for gastroenteritis and dehydration.

Curnell’s death came at a time of increased scrutiny of how black women are handled behind bars. She was one of at least six such women nationwide to die in law enforcement custody that month. They included Sandra Bland, the inmate found hanged in a Texas jail days after a state trooper pulled her from her car during a traffic stop. Her death was ruled a suicide, but the trooper was indicted on a perjury charge for his handling of the arrest. Cont.

Story from - The Post Courier