LEXINGTON, S.C. — A West Columbia man is hospitalized after exchanging gunfire with Lexington County deputies early Friday morning.
Lexington County Sheriff Jay Koon said the incident began shortly after 3 a.m. when the sheriff’s department received a 911 call from a home in the 200 block of Shadowfield Drive. The call initially ended in a hang-up.
“The caller called back about 10 minutes later,” Koon said. “He was incoherent, made some threatening statements about us being prepared and not sending a rookie.”
Koon said two deputies responded to the residence and encountered a 46-year-old man standing behind an SUV and holding a shotgun.
“He fired the shotgun at the deputies,” Koon said. “Both deputies fired their service weapons, striking him multiple times and incapacitating him.”
Neither deputy was injured.
Lexington County EMS transported the man to a hospital, according to Koon.
“We’re very familiar with this residence,” Koon said. He added that the suspect has a criminal history that includes assault and battery, drug possession, drunkenness and domestic violence.
“We’re very thankful the deputies are physically OK,” Koon said. “Through their training, they were able to successfully mitigate the situation.”
Koon said both deputies have been placed on paid administrative leave while the sheriff’s office conducts an internal, policy-based review of the response.
Koon also requested that the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division investigate the shooting.
“I’ve also asked SLED to conduct the investigation into the shooting itself, which is standard procedure for us,” Koon said. “We always do that to ensure an unbiased and thorough assessment of what happened.”
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