On a January afternoon in Burton, South Carolina, a call for help from a woman being held against her will set in motion a tragic chain of events. It was January 8, 2002, when Beaufort County Sheriff's Lance Corporal Dana Tate, a 44-year-old male U.S. Navy veteran, and his partner, Corporal Dyke 'A.J.' Coursen, responded to the domestic disturbance call on Riley Road.
The two deputies were there to assist a woman who reported that her boyfriend was preventing her and her young child from leaving.
Upon their arrival at the mobile home, the situation appeared calm on the outside. However, inside, the woman's boyfriend, Tyree Roberts, was concealed in a bedroom closet, armed with a semi-automatic rifle. After the owner of the trailer gave the deputies permission to search the bedroom, a sudden barrage of gunfire erupted. Both officers were struck multiple times. Corporal Coursen sustained six gunshot wounds and died at the scene. Lance Corporal Tate was shot seven times, but before succumbing to his injuries, he managed to return fire and wound Roberts.
Following the shooting, Roberts fled the scene, prompting a search by law enforcement. He was discovered a short time later, hiding in the mud beneath a bridge with gunshot wounds to his shoulder and hip. In his possession was a fanny pack containing ammunition, a knife, and a cell phone. An SKS assault rifle and a rifle magazine were also recovered in the area where he had run.
Tyree Roberts, a convicted felon who was on parole at the time of the murders, was charged with two counts of capital murder. During his 2003 trial, he chose to represent himself, though he had two lawyers appointed to assist him. After 13 days of testimony, the jury took only an hour to find him guilty of the murders of both Lance Corporal Dana Tate and Corporal Dyke Coursen. The jury then deliberated for just 45 minutes before recommending a sentence of death. Roberts, who now goes by the name Abdiyyah ben Alkebulanyahh, has remained on death row, continuing to file appeals in the years following his conviction.
