Man killed over brandy 26-year-old dead, 50-year-old arrested in shooting incident BY JADE REYNOLDS jade@theitem.com (803) 774-1250
THURSDAY, MARCH 27, 2014
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SERVING SOUTH CAROLINA SINCE OCTOBER 15, 1894 2 SECTIONS, 18 PAGES | VOL. 119, NO. 138
It started over a bottle of alcohol, brandy to be precise. It ended with one man dead and another in custody. Shamarr Howell, 26, was pronounced dead on scene in the first block of Murphy Street about 10:48 p.m. Tuesday, said Sumter County
Coroner Harvin Bullock. An autopsy was being conducted Wednesday morning, but the suspected cause of death is a single shot to the head, he said. ANDREWS Jeffrey Dana Andrews, 50, of 12 Murphy St., was arrested and charged with murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime.
When Sumter County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the scene, they found the deceased on the porch and the suspect on scene. The suspect admitted to shooting Howell, according to a press release from the sheriff’s office. The incident report also states the suspect saying the victim started pushing and hitting him.
SEE ANDREWS, PAGE A10
Elderly woman dies in blaze
New face, same goals LMA has a new coach, but maintains expectations B1 IN NEWS
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Sumter coroner speaks at hearings for DSS handling of child abuse A8
DEATHS, B4 Jean P. Cummins Johnny Lee Rufus Grady M. Johnson Ann G. Jones Cleo T. Dickey
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Family members of Earthy L. McRae console each other outside the home on Goins Place in Summerton. Fire struck the family home around 9 a.m. Wednesday, killing McRae.
House fire claims Alzheimer’s sufferer, 83 BY JIM HILLEY jim@theitem.com (803) 774-1211 SUMMERTON — Earthy L. McCray, 83, of 1098 Goins Road in Summerton, died Wednesday morning in a fire at her residence in Clarendon County. While the cause of the fire is still under investigation, reports on the scene indicated the blaze could have started with an electrical problem. Willie Starks, the victim’s brother, said McCray was suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease. He said he was concerned his sister may have been unable to escape the fire if she was unable to get past any locked doors. “I warned them about it many a time that this could happen,” Starks said, although he did not say who was acting as a caregiver for McCray at the time of her death. Clarendon County Deputy Coroner Bucky Mock said the victim was found laying next to a door in one of the rooms in the house but could not confirm whether any doors
Officials with the Clarendon County Coroner’s office arrive at the scene of a fatal house fire on Goins Place in Summerton on Wednesday afternoon. were locked or not. He said it appeared she was already dead when firefighters found her. The cause of death will be released pending an autopsy. Unconfirmed reports indicated that McCray was not found when firefighters made their initial sweep of the house, but she was found on the second sweep. Kenneth Clark, an investigator with the Clarendon County Sheriff’s Department, said early Wednesday evening the county’s fire investigator, Sean Briley, was at the scene and that an arson
investigator from the South Carolina Law Enforcement Department would also investigate the case. “That is not unusual. They always get involved,” Clark said. Clark said there were no criminal charges pending, but the situation was still under investigation. A spokesperson for the Clarendon County Fire Department said Fire Chief Frances Richbourg was also at the scene Wednesday evening. A call center representative for the Alzheimer’s Association said caregiv-
ers who need help with the burden of caring for disabled family members can contact the association at 1-800-272-3900. Many programs are available to assist caregivers, the representative said, but the amount of help available can vary depending on the state. She also advised caregivers to contact their local agency on aging. Caregivers in Clarendon, Kershaw, Lee and Sumter counties can call Santee-Lynches Area Agency on Aging at (803) 775-7381, or visit the agency at 36 W. Liberty St. in Sumter.
South Carolina’s Military Task Force address coming concerns at meeting BY BRISTOW MARCHANT bmarchant@theitem.com (803) 774-1272 COLUMBIA — Federal financial struggles in recent years have put the military in a tough position. The Pentagon plans to reduce the number of servicemen and women BRISTOW MARCHANT / THE SUMTER ITEM after winding down the wars Col. Bill Lieblein with the Marine Corps Air Station in Beaufort updates in Iraq and Afghanistan. Sethe state Military Task Force on pilot training for the new F-35 aircraft. questration cuts — now temThe task force for assessing and meeting the needs of the state’s mili- porarily delayed — fell disprotary community met in Columbia on Wednesday to discuss looming portionately on the armed forces. And in the next few military cutbacks.
years, a new round of base closures is possible. All those issues confronted South Carolina’s Military Task Force — the body tasked with representing Shaw Air Force Base and other military communities around the state — when it met Wednesday. Col. Dan Beatty, Fort Jackson’s chief of staff, warned the task force of the effect falling troop numbers envisioned by the current federal budget could have on the Midlands area.
When the new fiscal year begins Oct. 1, the Army is supposed to go to “active component only,” or 490,000 troops, Beatty said. In 2015, troop strength is set to go down further to 450,000. But the budget compromise that alleviated sequestration cuts only lasts two years, at which point, the military could face further cuts. “When the two-year bipartisan budget act expires in ’16,
SEE TASK FORCE, PAGE A10