2 Dead After Chester Shootings

CHESTER, S.C.,None — Two men are dead after a shooting incident that started at a Chester club and ended in more gunfire outside of the emergency room at Chester Regional Medical Center.

"It's just senseless, about as cold-blooded as you can get," said Chester County Sheriff Richard Smith.

Late Monday, a state police helicopter flew over the Studio 72 nightclub on the J.A. Cochran Bypass, and K-9 officers sniffed around behind the building.

Smith said at about 1:30 a.m., shots rang out inside the club. As people left the club, there were more shots fired in the parking lot.

Five sheriff's deputies were there at the time. Three were on duty, and two were working security for the club when the shooting started, Smith said.

"That's just how brazen this was," Smith said.

At least four people were shot, Smith said, and several of the victims rode to the hospital with friends.

Smith said when the group got to Chester Regional Medical Center, someone opened fire on 20-year-old Derek Chalk. He was shot multiple times, at least once in the head, and died trying to help a wounded friend into the emergency room, Smith said. The shooting happened in the breezeway, right outside the hospital door.

"I don't understand what happened to my son," said Chalk's mother, Bernice Chalk.

Chalk told Eyewitness News she'd seen her son just hours before the shooting. She knew he was going to the Studio 72 club with friends and cousins, she said.

"I just want to know why they shot my baby like that. They just took him away from me. I won't ever get to see him no more," she said.

Another man, 24-year-old Antonio Price, was shot outside the club, and died Monday at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte.

Smith said late Monday there were no suspects in custody for the shootings, and no clear motive.

The Studio 72 club used to be located on Columbia Street in Chester until it burned down last year. Smith told Eyewitness News that there are deputies there almost every weekend for security reasons.

Smith said no one gave officers a detailed description of a suspect, and police dogs didn't find a solid track or any other evidence. Also, the surveillance cameras outside the hospital ER were not working.

Until September, there were no homicides reported in Chester County this year. Then, earlier this month, Faris Wray was found shot to death on Saluda Street. Now, with three homicides this month, Smith said he's very concerned.

"I can't answer the question about why this has happened again. We're just working on solving it," Smith said.

Anyone with information that could help deputies solve the case is asked to call the Chester County Sheriff's Office at 803-581-5131.

Previous Stories: September 14, 2010: Chester Man Charged In Fatal Shooting September 9, 2010: Deputies Searching For Leads In Fatal Chester County Shooting

WSOC