SC Officer Charged with Voluntary Manslaughter in Shooting of Motorist

A South Carolina police officer involved in a fatal shooting over the weekend was arrested and charged with voluntary manslaughter Wednesday. Hemingway Police Officer Cassandra Dollard was arrested in Berkeley County and has been booked into a detention center.

The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) investigated Saturday’s shooting in Georgetown County and in a press release stated “an unarmed man was shot once during an encounter with an officer from the Hemingway Police Department following a pursuit. The subject was transported to the hospital where he died as a result of his injuries. The subject was identified by the Georgetown County Coroner as Robert Langley, 46.”

According to the arrest warrant, which was provided on SLED’s website, Dollard initiated a traffic stop on Langley for disregarding a stop sign. Langley failed to stop and a pursuit ensued with the vehicles traveling in excess of 100 mph. About eight miles outside the Town of Hemingway, where the pursuit began, Langley’s vehicle drove into a ditch.

“Langley, un-armed, attempted to exit the vehicle through the front passenger door. In a statement to agents, Dollar claimed she was in fear for her safety and due to that fear, discharged her department-issued firearm once, striking Langley in the chest,” the arrest warrant stated.