On a January afternoon in 2002, a domestic disturbance call set in motion a tragic chain of events that would end in the deaths of two Beaufort County Sheriff's deputies in Burton, South Carolina. Corporal Dyke 'A.J.' Coursen, a 35-year-old male, and his partner, Lance Corporal Dana Tate, responded to a report of a woman and her child being held against their will.
The call came from a residence on Riley Road, where a man named Tyree Roberts was refusing to let his girlfriend and their infant daughter leave.
Upon their arrival at the mobile home, the deputies began their investigation. The woman who had called 911 met them and explained that Roberts had struck her and she wanted to leave with her child. Unbeknownst to the officers, Roberts, a convicted felon on parole, had armed himself with a semi-automatic rifle and concealed himself inside a bedroom closet. As Coursen and Tate proceeded to search the bedroom, Roberts opened fire, unleashing a barrage of bullets.
In the ensuing chaos, both Corporal Coursen and Lance Corporal Tate were fatally wounded. Despite being mortally wounded, Tate managed to return fire, injuring Roberts. The gunman, Tyree Roberts, then fled the scene, prompting a search by law enforcement. He was discovered a short time later, hiding in the mud under a nearby bridge, suffering from gunshot wounds to his shoulder and hip.
In the aftermath of the deadly shooting, Roberts was taken into custody and subsequently charged with the murders of the two officers. During his trial in 2003, he chose to represent himself. After thirteen days of testimony, the jury took only an hour to convict him on two counts of murder. Following the conviction, the jury deliberated for just 45 minutes before recommending a sentence of death. Roberts, who later changed his name to Abdiyyah ben Alkebulanyahh, has remained on death row, with his case continuing through the appeals process for years.
