In the spring of 2016, a family argument in Gaston, South Carolina, escalated to a fatal conclusion, ending the life of 24-year-old Heirbrane Will Foster. On the afternoon of May 10, a dispute over a barbeque grill erupted between Foster and his father, Heirberone Heava Foster, at their home on Oak Glenn Drive. The verbal altercation took a dark turn when the elder Foster went inside the residence, only to emerge minutes later armed with a pump-action shotgun.
Witnesses testified that
after the initial argument had seemingly concluded, Heirberone Foster approached his son in the driveway, aimed the shotgun at his chest, and fired a single, fatal shot. Emergency services were called to the scene, but Heirbrane Will Foster was pronounced dead from the gunshot wound. The young man, a male, was entangled in his own legal troubles at the time of his death, being out on a $10,000 bond for narcotics charges stemming from a police chase the previous month.
In the immediate aftermath of the shooting, Lexington County sheriff's deputies apprehended Heirberone Heava Foster, then 54, at a nearby home. He was arrested and charged with the murder of his son. In addition to the murder charge, he also faced charges for possession of a firearm during a violent crime and illegally possessing a firearm due to a prior felony conviction. His criminal history included multiple convictions for domestic violence, assault and battery, and disorderly conduct.
During legal proceedings, a Lexington County jury found Heirberone Heava Foster guilty of murdering his son. In May 2019, a judge sentenced the 58-year-old to 30 years in prison for the killing, a crime that the prosecutor described as a 'senseless killing that has torn a family apart.' The sentence for the murder charge is classified as a 'no parole' offense under South Carolina law. Following the conviction, he was transported to the South Carolina Department of Corrections to serve his sentence.
