Jordan Turbeville, a 28-year-old Dillon man charged with the May 2012 murder of Annie Mae Manning, pled guilty in Chesterfield County before Circuit Judge Paul Burch to one count of murder and two counts of attempted murder.
He was sentenced to 33 years on the murder charge and 15 years each on the attempted murder charges. The sentences will run concurrently. In South Carolina, a murder sentence is day-for-day, meaning he will have to serve every day of 33 years.
“There’s nothing the criminal justice system could have done to bring back Mrs. Manning or to make this family whole again,” said Assistant Solicitor Shipp Daniel, who prosecuted the case. “But this sentence provides some amount of justice, knowing this man will be incarcerated for a very long time.”
Daniel said the State was prepared to call the case for trial, but Turbeville elected at the last minute to plead.
At the hearing, the State presented facts it said would have come out at trial. On May 21, 2012, after an earlier dispute with some individuals who lived in the Oakland community, Turbeville walked nearly a mile from his home to the home where the victims were located.
When he was about a block and a half away from the crime scene, Turbeville began firing his assault rifle, unloading more than 70 rounds into the neighborhood. His bullets hit at least three houses and three people – Annie Mae Manning, Nathan Manning and Queshawn McNair. Annie Mae Manning died as a result of the shooting. Turbeville turned himself into law enforcement nearly eight days later and has been in custody since.
Also at the hearing, Daniel said most of the facts of the case were agreed upon between the State and the Defense. He said the main issue would have been whether the proper charge was murder, as the State believed, or the lesser included charge of voluntary manslaughter, as the Defense believed. Daniel said he was confident that the facts and law supported the charge of murder, and he was not willing to let the defendant plead to the lesser charge.
“This was murder, plain and simple. The Court agreed and sent a message that taking matters into your own hands isn’t acceptable,” said Daniel.
