In the quiet town of Orangeburg, South Carolina, the life of 32-year-old Reginald Middleton Jr., a Black male, was abruptly cut short in a wave of violence that sent ripples through the community. On the evening of Thursday, September 22, 2022, Middleton was at the Nixbax & Company store located at 1345 Five Chop Road when he was struck by gunfire. The shooting, which occurred around 9:30 p.m., left him critically injured.
He was rushed to the Regional Medical Center and subsequently transferred to Prisma Health Richland Hospital in Columbia, where he succumbed to his injuries the following day.
The investigation into Middleton's death led authorities to 23-year-old Jahleel D. Patterson. At the time of the shooting, Patterson was already out on bond and awaiting trial for a separate murder charge from 2020, as well as three counts of attempted murder. Investigators pieced together evidence that allegedly placed Patterson at the scene of the crime. According to law enforcement, the shooting was not a random act of violence; Middleton was the intended target.
Following the investigation, Jahleel D. Patterson was arrested and charged with the murder of Reginald Middleton and possession of a weapon during a violent crime. A judge denied bond for Patterson, citing the gravity of the charges and his pending trial for another violent crime. This meant he would remain in custody as he awaited legal proceedings for both murder charges. The community was left to grapple with the loss of one of its own, a man whose life was taken in a senseless act of violence, and the unsettling reality of the circumstances surrounding the alleged perpetrator.
