DILLON, SC – A Dillon County jury found Marc “Duke” McKeiver guilty of trafficking 100 grams to 200 grams of methamphetamine after just under three hours of deliberation. Circuit Court Judge Paul Burch sentenced McKeiver to the statutorily-mandated 25 years and assessed a statutorily-mandated $50,000 fine.
At trial, Assistant Solicitor Shipp Daniel, who prosecuted the case for the State, presented three witnesses – all SLED agents – who were involved in a 2019 multi-agency drug investigation that targeted several people, including McKeiver. The investigation used confidential informants and search warrants that resulted in multiple charges being filed. SLED, the Drug Enforcement Agency, the Dillon County Sheriff’s Department and the Dillon Police Department were all involved in the investigation.
McKeiver, who at the time of trial had nine pending drug and weapons charges in Dillon County, was facing a maximum of 135 years on all charges combined. In October 2021, Daniel offered McKeiver a plea deal of 15 years to encompass all of his charges. In December 2021, McKeiver rejected that offer. Therefore, Daniel called one of McKeiver’s trafficking methamphetamine charges to trial this week.
At trial, Daniel presented video, photographic and other physical evidence that he argued proved McKeiver’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Included in the evidence presented were photographs of unique-looking methamphetamine pills that were posted to McKeiver’s social media account on the same day that the confidential informant bought similarly-looking methamphetamine pills from McKeiver.
After just under three hours of deliberation, the jury returned a verdict of guilty, which was and must be unanimous. The Court sentenced McKeiver to the mandated 25 years, and he was immediately taken into custody. According to South Carolina law, McKeiver must serve at least 85% of his sentence before being eligible for parole.
“Under Solicitor Will Rogers’ leadership, we take drug offenses seriously,” said Daniel after the verdict. “This verdict should send a message to our community that our law enforcement agencies and the solicitor’s office continue to work together to make Dillon County a safer place. We thank the jury for its service.
