Hartsville mayhem ‘just heartbreaking’


By Bobby Bryant
Editor
editor@newsandpress.net

On Jan. 26, two men fired volleys of gunshots into a crowd of perhaps 200 people at Mac’s Lounge on Camden Avenue in Hartsville. Now, Darlington County residents are dealing with grief for the three men killed, concern for the three hospitalized with gunshot wounds and shock that a mass shooting could happen here.
“Never in 1 million years would I think that this would be my family’s turn. And to be honest, this should not be another family’s turn,” Rev. William Robinson Jr., brother of one of the slain men, told WPDE-TV. “Stop the violence, man. Stop it. Put the guns down, put the metal down. Talk, man. Learn to talk it out.”
Bryan Robinson, 29, died in the attack on the bar, along with Dicaprio Collins, 21 (some news reports spell his first name Decapio). Robinson’s obituary on Hines Funeral Home’s website describes him as “a nurturing man who had a deep and profound love for people. … He was a peacemaker and a problem-solver with the most humble spirit and smile.”
The obituary says he worked with his father at Gainey Tool and Fab. He was known as “the Dog Whisperer” because of his love for his three dogs (Diamond, Envy and Obama). He also loved fishing and football.
A third person, identified by Darlington County Coroner Todd Hardee as Garrett Bakhsh, 18, a Maryland student attending Coker University, died two days after being wounded in the attack. Bakhsh, according to news reports, was in his first semester at Coker. He was the son of two police officers and was studying criminal justice.
The first two identified suspects, Darius Grant Dickey, 20, and Davijon Kahlil McCall, 24, of Hartsville, are in the Darlington County jail. Dickey was charged with four counts of attempted murder, pointing and presenting a firearm, violation of a city ordinance, possession of a weapon a by Darlington County Coroner Todd Hardee as Garrett Bakhsh, 18, a Maryland student attending Coker University, died two days after being wounded in the attack. Bakhsh, according to news reports, was in his first semester at Coker. He was the son of two police officers and was studying criminal justice.
The first two identified suspects, Darius Grant Dickey, 20, and Davijon Kahlil McCall, 24, of Hartsville, are in the Darlington County jail. Dickey was charged with four counts of attempted murder, pointing and presenting a firearm, violation of a city ordinance, possession of a weapon during a violent crime, discharging a firearm at or into a structure and carrying a firearm onto premises of a business selling alcohol or liquors.
Officials said one of the attempted-murder charges against Dickey was to be upgraded to murder with the death of Bakhsh, the Coker student.
Some reports say Dickey was out on bond on a previous charge when he was arrested in the bar shootings. It wasn’t clear where he was arrested. A statement from the city of Hartsville said the U.S. Marshal’s Service pursued him outside Darlington County.
McCall was arrested in Durham, N.C. He is charged with two counts of murder, discharging a firearm out of or into a structure, possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime, one count of attempted murder, carrying a firearm onto a premise is where alcohol is sold, unlawful carrying of a handgun and discharging a firearm within the city limits.
A third suspect in the case remained unidentified until Friday. He is Antonio Verell Mills, and he is charged with criminal conspiracy.
The three people wounded and hospitalized in the bar attack have not been named because of medical-privacy laws.
At a meeting of the Darlington County school board the day after the bar attack, education superintendent Tim Newman alluded to the incident in remarks to the board.
Newman said he wanted to address “the tragedy that happened in one of our communities in Darlington County. …What happened in Hartsville is just heartbreaking. I wanted to acknowledge the tragedy, but also just the families that were affected. … I’ve been talking to principals today. I’ve talked with a lot of parents. I’ve talked to a lot of employees.
“The stress and trauma that just puts on a small community – it’s just indescribable. Some of the reports that you hear – people say, ‘That would never happen here.’ It’s happened. … We are trying to help our students as best as we can, but truthfully, you don’t know until they all show up in one place and start having discussions. I’m talking about the youngest of students all the way up to our high-school students, they’re all impacted, affected.
“That is something we’ve been dealing with today.”
Last Wednesday, the Hartsville Police Department said on its Facebook page: “Our hearts go out to the families and friends of the three individuals that passed away as a result of this weekend’s tragedy. This is certainly news that no one ever wishes to wake up to find out has happened so close to home.
“We understand that the entire Hartsville community is broken-hearted and wants closure as they anxiously await all of the details. Please understand that this is still an ongoing and active investigation. We will release details to the public as soon as we possibly can.”
Last Tuesday, Jack Logan, founder of the Greenville-based Put Down the Guns Now Young People, held a news conference in front of Mac’s Lounge to ask Darlington County Council and law enforcement to “shut the business down.”

Author: Stephan Drew

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