In the quiet town of Johnston, South Carolina, the life of 63-year-old Milledge H. Hall was tragically cut short in a violent encounter that unfolded on the evening of May 7, 2018. Hall, a male resident of Johnston, was at the local Pool Room when an altercation led to his untimely death. The events of that day would culminate in a police shootout and a lengthy legal process, forever altering the lives of those involved.
Earlier in the day, a man named Barry Wayne Jones had a verbal
dispute with employees at the Pool Room and was asked to leave the premises. Later that evening, Jones returned to the establishment. Hall, upon seeing Jones pull into the parking lot, went outside to confront him. During their conversation, Jones produced a pistol and fired at Hall, striking him in the left side and arm. Hall was rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment but sadly succumbed to his injuries in the early hours of May 8, 2018.
Following the shooting, Jones fled the scene, prompting a search by local law enforcement. An Edgefield County Sheriff's Office deputy later spotted Jones's vehicle. As officers followed, Jones led them down a dirt road where he stopped and opened fire on them with a rifle. The officers returned fire, and in the exchange, Jones sustained a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the neck area. He was subsequently taken into custody and transported to a hospital for his injuries.
Barry Wayne Jones was arrested and charged with the murder of Milledge H. Hall. In December 2021, after a trial in Edgefield County, a jury found Jones guilty of murder. Evidence presented during the trial revealed that Jones had returned to the Pool Room with multiple firearms and had sent a text message indicating his intent to harm Hall. Jones was sentenced to 35 years in prison for the murder of Milledge H. Hall.
