Teen justified in killing knife-wielding neighbor, prosecutors say

LANCASTER COUNTY, S.C. — The Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office said it will not charge a 14-year-old who they say shot and killed his 29-year-old neighbor.

A family living on Hillcrest Avenue, east of Springdale, reported that their neighbor came onto their property on Thursday and attacked two juveniles, according to investigators.

The neighbor lived in a home behind the teen’s house and had come onto the property several times uninvited, the sheriff said.

On Thursday, the man assaulted the teen’s brother, who is also a minor.

The neighbor then pulled out a knife and ran toward the teen who locked himself in a pickup truck. The neighbor, still armed with a knife, tried to get in the truck.

The teen grabbed a pistol from inside and shot and killed him, the sheriff said.

A man at the scene secured the gun by the time the police got there.

“This was a tragic result from an unfortunate set of circumstances,” said Sheriff Barry Faile. “Based upon what we know from the investigation up to this point, the shooting was justified. The investigation is continuing, and we are following up on additional information. We will also look at the autopsy report and the results of forensic testing on the evidence collected. We will take appropriate action if any information we develop changes our initial assessment of this incident.”

Prosecutors decided not to charge the teen and called the shooting justified.

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