SC woman dies in Columbia domestic violence shooting, Richland sheriff says

A woman was killed Sunday in what the Richland County Sheriff’s Department is calling a domestic violence homicide.

Richland County deputies responded at 6 p.m. to an apartment complex on the 700 block of Mallet Hill Road, where deputies found the deceased woman with gunshot wounds lying outside of an apartment building, the department said late Sunday night.

The Richland County Coroner’s Office has not publicly identified the victim.

A male suspect, who also has not been identified by law enforcement, barricaded himself inside the apartment, leading to an hourslong standoff with the Richland County Sheriff’s Department and other first responding agencies.

The sheriff’s department at 7:05 p.m. Sunday issued an “urgent” alert for a “high priority crisis situation,” asking the public to avoid the area.

The sheriff’s department said negotiators spoke to the suspect, who they said was believed to be armed, for nearly three hours.

Close to 9 p.m. Sunday, the Richland County Sheriff’s Department said the suspect stopped responding to negotiators and, minutes after, the department said deputies heard a gunshot from inside the apartment. When they entered the unit, deputies found the suspect with a gunshot wound to the upper body, the department said.

The suspect was taken by EMS to a local hospital for treatment. An update on his condition was not immediately available.

The sheriff’s department said it’s learned that the suspect and the victim had a romantic relationship.

“This is another sad example of how violent and deadly a domestic situation can be,” Sheriff Leon Lott said in a statement Sunday night. “This will impact two families, many friends and a community deeply.”

Forty-nine people were murdered by a household member in 2021, the last year for publicly available data, according to the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office 2022 report. Of those killed, 37 were women — 76% of the total — and 12 were men.

Guns were the primary weapon used, the report said.

©2023 The State. Visit thestate.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.