COLUMBIA, S.C. — Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott said a 16-year-old pulled a gun on one of his deputies leading the deputy to shoot and wound the teen. Meanwhile, two other suspects were bitten by K9 officers during the leadup to that incident.
Lott held a briefing with reporters Monday afternoon where he gave new details on an incident which happened late Sunday afternoon in northeast Richland County. The incident sent three teens to the hospital, one with a gunshot wound and the other with dogs bites. No deputy was injured in the shooting.
According to the sheriff, the situation actually began on Saturday night, when a 15-year-old suspect stole a truck that was parked at a Lexington convenience store. The truck was running and had the keys in the ignition, and had a gun inside it. "Don't leave your vehicle running at a convenience store that's almost like you're begging for somebody to come steal it," Lott said.
The sheriff said the 15-year-old met up with a 16-year-old and a 19-year-old that he knew the next day. Around 5 p.m., deputies spotted the stolen vehicle near the Summit neighborhood, and a pursuit began. Eventually, Lott said the vehicle crashed into a power pole in the Summit. and the suspects all got out and started running into the Carriage Oaks neighborhood.
Two Richland County K9s--Nevada and Jax--chased after the teens and were able to stop the 15-year-old and 19-year-old in part by biting them. "If you run from our k9 officers, that police dog, and you've committed a serious offense, you are going to get bit," Lott explained.
Lott said the 16-year-old jumped a fence.
Deputy Cody Sox, who is Nevada's partner and was part of the chase, then approached the teen, who Lott said pointed a loaded gun at Sox. At that point, Lott said Sox fired multiple shots at the 16-year-old, injuring him. Lott said the teen did not fire a shot, but Lott said pointing a weapon requires the same response as shooting it.
"If you have a gun, and you point at us, or you shoot at us, you're going to get shot," Lott said.
He also added that there were homes in the area when the teen raised the gun to shoot.
Lott said the 16-year-old will survive but is expected to be in the hospital for a while. The 15-year-old and 19-year-old were treated at the hospital for the dog bites.
"This is a dangerous job," Lott said. "We're fortunate in Richland County I'm not talking about our deputies being killed."
Lott said the teens had been in trouble before, but couldn't elaborate, because two of the suspects are minors. He said one of the suspects had cut off their court-ordered ankle monitor over the weekend.
Lott said the Fifth Circuit Solicitor's Office and a citizen's advisory council will look into Sox's actions to see if the shooting was justified, but Lott believes it was.