In the summer of 2018, a violent encounter in a West Columbia apartment complex tragically cut short the life of Samir Bernard Atkins, a 26-year-old male. The incident unfolded on the afternoon of July 5th at a set of units on Glenn Street, where gunfire erupted inside one of the apartments. Atkins was struck in the upper body by the gunfire and succumbed to his injuries.
The shooting left two other individuals wounded.
One of the surviving victims was reported to be in critical condition, while the other sustained non-life-threatening injuries. In the days following the shooting, a second victim, 41-year-old Elzie Mack Jr., also died from the wounds he sustained in the attack. The West Columbia Police Department quickly launched an investigation into the triple shooting that had now become a double homicide.
Authorities identified 25-year-old Damien Lavar Ritter as the suspect in the deadly shooting. On July 13, 2018, the West Columbia Police Department announced his arrest. Ritter faced a litany of charges, including two counts of murder for the deaths of Atkins and Mack. The charges against him also included attempted murder, robbery while armed with a deadly weapon, possession of a firearm during a violent crime, kidnapping, grand larceny, and criminal conspiracy. Following his arrest, Ritter was booked into the Lexington County Jail to await a bond hearing. Funeral services for Samir Bernard Atkins were held on a Friday at Brookland Baptist Church in West Columbia, followed by his burial in the Lincoln Cemetery.
