In a quiet Lancaster, South Carolina home, a family dispute on a Saturday afternoon turned tragically violent, ending the life of 47-year-old Tony Sheril Gladden. On September 28, 2019, Gladden was in the living room of the Franandel Drive residence he shared with his mother when he was fatally shot. Witnesses at the home reported hearing gunshots while Gladden and his half-brother, Manly Maurice Thompson, were alone in the room.
Following the sound of gunfire, Thompson, 43 at the time,
was seen leaving the home on foot. When deputies from the Lancaster County Sheriff's Office arrived at the scene around 3 p.m., they discovered Gladden lying on the living room floor with what appeared to be multiple gunshot wounds. Emergency medical services treated him at the scene before he was transported to the Medical University of South Carolina Lancaster's helipad. From there, he was airlifted to Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he ultimately succumbed to his injuries.
The investigation into the shooting quickly focused on Manly Maurice Thompson as the primary suspect. A short time after the initial law enforcement response, Thompson returned to the Franandel Drive home and was taken into custody by investigators without incident. He was subsequently arrested and charged with the murder of his half-brother, Tony Sheril Gladden, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a violent crime. Thompson was transported to the Lancaster County Detention Center to await a bond hearing as the investigation into the family dispute that led to the fatal shooting continued.
