Two soldiers who were trying to protect a woman at a SC bar were shot and killed.
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Arrest warrants say the men pulled Mills away from the woman.
Joseph Mills, 25, of Little Mountain, was charged with two counts of murder. The South Carolina National Guard confirmed that Judge was from Moore, in Spartanburg County.
The South Carolina National Guard says Judge was a staff sergeant and had served with them for 22 years.
Justin Brooks, owner of the Frayed Knot, said he’s planning a memorial for Staff Sgt. Charles Allen Judge Jr. and Sgt. 1st Class Jonathon Michael Prins.
A U.S. Army spokesman would not name the soldiers but said that one was a Guardsman assigned to Camp McCrady on Fort Jackson and the other was an Army active duty soldier. Judge and Prins attempted to resolve the situation Mills shot them, officers said.
Judge’s commander at the training center, Col. Renita Berry, said his fellow soldiers were shocked and saddened at Judge’s death.
“Mills then presented a handgun” and allegedly fired the fatal shots.
He leaves behind a wife and three small children, Marrissa 9, Savannah 6, and Julian, 3. The State newspaper has requested the recording from investigators at the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department, but has not received a response.
The gunman got back on the docks and started looking for the woman, Brooks said.
“When [Judge and Prins] get in within two feet of him-they both have their hands up trying to talk to him-and he just shoots them in cold blood”, Brooks said. It’s unclear whether the shooting occurred inside or outside the bar, but video of the incident was captured, according to the warrants.
Judge Arthur Myers, a Lexington County magistrate, denied bond for Mills at a hearing Monday afternoon.
“He’s always going to be a hero in our eyes”, Deese said. “I never meant for it to happen like that”.
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One man is behind bars after two men died in a shooting at the Frayed Knot Bar & Grill on the north side of Lake Murray near the Lexington/Newberry County line early Sunday morning.
