MAY 15–21, 2025
WWW.YOURISLANDNEWS.COM
COVERING BEAUFORT COUNTY
Battery Creek High School freshman L.J. Washington has his picture taken with an L.A. Galaxy player whom he was told he resembled. Washington, 14, was shot and killed in a drive-by shooting while playing video games in his living room on New Year’s Day 2024 in Burton. Photo from Club Beaufort de Fútbol Facebook page
Arrests made in 2024 murder of Battery Creek freshman Staff reports The Beaufort County Sheriff's Office has made two arrests in connection with the January 2024 murder of 14-year-old Jerrieme Jermaine “L.J.” Washington, a Battery Creek High School freshman who was killed at his home on New Year’s Day. Sheriff's Office Investigators obtained and served arrest warrants on 18-year-old Jeremiah Warren and 20-year-old Alex Bush. Both subjects were charged for their involvement in the murder that occurred on Castle Rock Road in the Burton area of Beaufort County back in 2024. On Thursday May 15, Jeremiah Warren was charged with Murder, Possession of a Weapon During a Violent Crime, and Aggravated Breach of Peace. Warren was already in custody at the Beaufort County Detention Center on another charge of Murder in connection to a September 2024 shooting that occurred at Magnolia Park Apartments in Burton and took the life of 17-year-old Arianna Mulligan. On May 10, 2025, Alex Bush was charged with Accessory Before the Fact to a Felony. Nashaun Benjamin, 20, is also named as a suspect in the Castle Rock Road shooting. He is currently in Federal Custody on Weapon charges, but he will also be charged for Murder, Possession of a Weapon During a Violent Crime, and Aggravated Breach of Peace. In 2024, deputies arrived at Washington’s home on Castle Rock Road after 9:30 p.m. on Jan. 1, where they found Washington suffering from a gunshot wound. Life-saving measures were unsuccessful, and he died at the scene, according to an alert sent out by the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office (BCSD) on Tuesday, Jan. 2. Washington was playing video games inside of his home when gunfire erupted from the roadway, according to the alert, and struck the home and a vehicle that was parked in the driveway. The two other people inside of the home when the shooting occurred were not injured. This investigation is still ongoing. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact lead investigator Sgt. Jennifer Petrone at 843-255-3440. For those wishing to remain anonymous, tips can be reported to Crime Stoppers of Beaufort County via the P3 Tips app, online at www.TIPSBFT. com, or by calling 1-844-TIPSBFT (1-844-847-7238).
The Parris Island Marine Corps Band sets a patriotic mood while leading the Memorial Day Parade down Boundary Street on Monday morning, May 27, 2024. Thousands of onlookers lined the street to listen to patriotic music and watch traditional floats roll by. Bob Sofaly/File photo/The Island News
Honoring those who gave all
A look at Memorial Day weekend in Beaufort By Mike McCombs The Island News Once again, it’s the time of year when, as Americans, we pause to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice in defense of our nation and our freedoms, as Monday, May 26 is Memorial Day. Of course, the event most affiliated in people’s minds with Memorial Day in Beaufort is the annual parade. The Beaufort County Veterans Affairs, in partnership with the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, will put on the annual Memorial Day parade beginning at 10 a.m. Lineup of all groups, floats and individual participants begins at 9 a.m. The parade route starts in front of Beaufort National Cemetery, will head down Boundary Street, curve onto Carteret Street, turn right onto Bay Street, and eventually end at the intersection of Boundary and Bladen Streets. Rev. Sam T. Spain Sr., the pastor of the historic Lady’s Island Baptist Church for longer than 30 years and
The Gullah Traveling Theater will perform the musical “Decoration Day” this weekend at the 40th Annual Original Gullah Festival. Submitted photo Spain said that several times in a retired Master Gunnery Sgt. in the U.S. Marine Corps, is the Vice Com- the past few years, there were “a lot mander of the Sons Of Union Veter- of entries, but not a lot of people on the sidelines.” ans, Camp 10 of Beaufort. “I pray that it goes well,” Spain SEE WEEKEND PAGE A6 said of this year’s parade.
DSS: ‘Runaway’ Beaufort preteen victim of human trafficking By Delayna Earley The Island News Months after a Beaufort preteen went missing for several days, it has been determined through an investigation by the South Carolina Department of Social Services (SCDSS) that she was likely the victim of human trafficking. It has been three months since 12-year-old Emily Hollis disappeared from her parents’ home in Beaufort, an event that sparked a heated online discourse regarding the usage of the term “runaway.” What happened In February 2025, Hollis was reported as a runaway by the Beaufort Police Department after she went missing from her home and was known to be in the company of 16-year-old Chase Eskeets. Eskeets and Hollis were re-
ported as runaways by the Beaufort Police Department based off the evidence found at the scene and known evidence, according to Lt. Lori Evans with the police department. According to Hollis’ parents, she had met Eskeets on Snapchat about two weeks before she disappeared while using a phone that was given to her by one of her friends, information that was not made aware to them until after she had been safely returned home. The youths were found in Jacksonville, Fla., after several days, but not before the community expressed outrage toward the police department’s labeling of Hollis as a runaway given her age. The Hollis family was contacted by South Carolina Law Enforcement Division Special Agent Logan Fey, who assisted
them by putting them into contact with SCDSS, a common practice with runaway or missing children’s cases. After interviewing all the involved parties, including several hour-long interviews with both parents, SCDSS sent a letter to the Hollis family saying that based on their findings, their case had been indicated for human trafficking. The Determination Fact Sheet, which is a form sent to parties with the findings from an investigation with SCDSS, states that Beaufort County DSS will “indicate against” the perpetrator. SCDSS conduced a forensic interview with Hollis, and in the interview, she made disclosures of trafficking, according to the Determination Fact Sheet. According to her parents, Hollis received a phone from a friend af-
ter hers was taken away as a punishment for an unrelated incident. The phone, which was not known to her parents, had the popular social media app SnapChat on it, which is what Hollis used to begin communicating with Eskeets. During the time they communicated, Eskeets allegedly spoke to Hollis about leaving home and 15 days after they became friends on SnapChat they left Beaufort. “From what she’s telling us, he was doing the whole schmoozy, ‘you know everybody hates you. You’re not meant for this town. Your friends aren’t … whatever,’” said Kiel Hollis, Emily’s father. “We grounded her, so of course she was angry. She’s angry about that, and when she got that sep-
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BMH’s PATH program recognizes first cohort of high school graduates.
Boy Named Banjo brings its sound to Beaufort.
35 years of physical excellence: Longtime Parris Island trainer prepares to retire.
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