GREENVILLE — A Greenville County Sheriff’s Deputy shot and killed a man holding a hammer after the man said he wanted to be shot, according to newly released body camera footage.
An internal investigation by the agency’s Office of Professional Standards determined the shooting was justified.
A single deputy shot 44-year-old Johnny Ray Moore Jr. Sept. 28 after a 911 caller said Moore was trespassing and warned that he may want to die, according to a Critical Incident Community Briefing released Nov. 5.
He is the sixth person Greenville County Sheriff’s Deputies shot this year and the fifth they killed. The Greenville County Sheriff’s Office, which is South Carolina's largest, routinely leads the state in the number of people it fatally shoots, according to a previous Post and Courier analysis.
While South Carolina law does not require law enforcement to release body camera footage, the Sheriff’s Office releases a short, edited selection of body camera footage with an explanation of what happened 45 days after shootings.
On Sept. 28 at about 1 p.m., deputies responded to a trespassing call on Stegall Circle, off White Horse Road.
The caller told law enforcement that Moore was trespassing on her property and that he intended to force deputies to kill him.
When the deputy arrived, he and Moore had a brief conversation next to Moore’s truck. Moore said he was trying to pack up and leave, and the deputy said he was under arrest. Moore then tried to evade the deputy, picking up a hammer and circling the truck.
The deputy, who laughed as he chased Moore, pulled out his gun.
“He said he’s going to get the police to kill him,” said the 911 caller, who was standing nearby.
“I see that’s what he’s trying to do,” the deputy responded.
The deputy told Moore to drop the hammer multiple times, using an expletive.
“I’m going to make you shoot me,” Moore said.
“No, you’re not,” the deputy said.
Seconds later — as the deputy stood at the front of the truck and Moore stood at the rear of the truck — the deputy shot Moore three times.
According to the sheriff’s office, Moore raised the hammer before the deputy fired. The footage does not show Moore raising the hammer.
Moore later died of his injuries.
The Sheriff’s Office asked SLED to conduct an independent investigation, as is customary. Their investigation is ongoing.
But in a video statement, Sheriff Hobart Lewis said an internal review found the deputy was justified.
