In the winter of 2017, the life of 18-year-old Quinnterrius Polite was tragically cut short in a fatal shooting in North Charleston, South Carolina. Polite, a Black male, was at the former North Charleston Inn on February 24, 2017, when he was ambushed and killed.
The incident, captured on hotel surveillance footage, showed 25-year-old Tyree Shequille Johnson waiting in the courtyard for 26 minutes before attacking Polite.
Johnson shot Polite six times, with several bullets striking him in the back as he tried to escape the sudden onslaught. The violence of the act was underscored by the calculated nature of the ambush.
Five days after the shooting, law enforcement located and arrested Johnson. At the time of his arrest, he was in possession of the weapon used to kill Polite. Johnson subsequently confessed to the murder. Initially, another individual had been taken into custody the day after the shooting, but as the investigation progressed, evidence unequivocally pointed to Johnson as the gunman.
In October 2017, Tyree Shequille Johnson was officially charged with the murder of Quinnterrius Polite. On the third day of his trial in September 2021, Johnson pleaded guilty to murder and possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison for his role in the death of Quinnterrius Polite. Prosecutors highlighted Johnson's prior firearm-related arrests as part of a pattern of senseless gun violence.
