Man killed in Goose CreekSheriff's office: Argument over rent ends with shooting By Nita Birmingham (Contact)
The Post and Courier
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Reported shooting
GOOSE CREEK — A heated argument about rent Saturday morning ended in gunfire that killed one man and put his two roommates in jail, the Berkeley County Sheriff's Office has said. Derrick Simmons, 27, was shot in the yard of 134 Liberty Hall Road and died at 2:55 a.m., Chief Deputy Coroner Bill Salisbury said. Investigators began looking for Simmons' roommates and by late afternoon had arrested Joseph McCoy, 22, on a charge of murder and Thomas Hamilton, 57, on a charge of misprision of a felony, county legal counsel Blair Jennings said. Hamilton is accused of withholding information, he said. Authorities said the men lived in a mobile home on the property of Hamilton's mother, Juanita Hamilton. She said she was unaware anything had happened until a deputy talked to her. She suffers from high blood pressure and said she was literally sick over what happened. Simmons walked to a gas station about an eighth of a mile away after he was shot, Jennings said. He was dead on arrival at Trident Medical Center. Deputies found blood and a handgun in the yard of 134 Liberty Hall Road, but testing will need to be done to determine if it is the weapon used to shoot Simmons. Salisbury wouldn't say how many times Simmons was shot or where on his body he was wounded. McCoy and Thomas Hamilton are being held at the Hill-Finklea Detention Center in Moncks Corner. Jennings did not know when they will have bond hearings, but only a Circuit Court judge can set bail on a murder charge. Reach Nita Birmingham at nbirmingham@postandcourier.com. |
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Comments
This article has 12 comment(s)
Posted by umakebrains on April 27, 2008 at 1:23 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Rent? today is the 27th were they trying to colect in advance for May.
Posted by ForPnC on April 27, 2008 at 6:16 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Rest in peace Mr. Simmons.
The only thing worse than occasionally reading these types of articles is going into work tomorrow to hear about them. I work with two people who seem to thrive on stuff like this. They love gossip.
Posted by lexylady on April 27, 2008 at 9:26 a.m. (Suggest removal)
McCoy and Hamilton won't ever have to worry about paying the rent again.. We will be paying the bills for these upstanding citizens.. I am so sick of it..
Posted by RTC on April 27, 2008 at 9:56 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Same old, same old.....
Posted by SomeTruthPlease on April 27, 2008 at 12:08 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Harpo..if you turn onto Liberty Hall Rd., off of Hwy. 52, it's probably just 200 yards down on the left...there's a little "strip" plaza with a video rental place, I think it is...it's the neighboring property to the left. It looks like a bunch of houses all crammed in together with a shared driveway.
Posted by Perspective on April 27, 2008 at 6:35 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Lexy- we will probably be paying rent for one. The other will likley strike a deal to testify and get off on an assault charge with probation. Unless the trial comes before the election and then the solicitor will try and hang both of them.
Posted by burton on April 27, 2008 at 7:05 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Any medical folks out there? Do you think it was the eighth of a mile walk that really did him in? Thought I read something on that. Sad case either way. People kill each other for the smallest thing.
Posted by RTC on April 27, 2008 at 9:23 p.m. (Suggest removal)
burton, if he was bleeding from an artery, he wouldn't have made it too far. Since they don't say where he was shot, he could have succumbed to internal bleeding, a collapsed lung, or shock. It is hard to say without knowing the extent of his injuries.
More than likely the poor fella bled out.
Posted by SomeTruthPlease on April 28, 2008 at 2:12 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I think that the older fella is in trouble because he concealed the whereabouts of the shooter...believe I heard that somewhere
Posted by LadyTarHeel on April 28, 2008 at 11:13 a.m. (Suggest removal)
SomeTruth: You are correct. Atleast that's what they said on the news the other night.
This is so sad and part of the reason I don't have a roommate. I don't need the arguments over rent and you never know when someone is going to decide to snap and take your life over a simple argument. My condolences to the family.
Posted by JohnS on April 28, 2008 at 1:51 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Don't try and collect rent when a man has been drinking Wild Irish Rose or Thunderbird.
Posted by jrobinson on April 28, 2008 at 5:26 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I was going to comment, but I just found out that the victim is my co- workers brother. Rita, very sorry for your loss. I'll be praying for you.