On the night of December 31, 1997, First Sergeant Frankie Lee Lingard, a 39-year-old male officer with the South Carolina Highway Patrol, was tragically killed in the line of duty. A 15-year veteran of the patrol and a United States Army veteran, Lingard was conducting a traffic stop on a speeding white Ford Mustang on Interstate 95 near Santee, South Carolina. As he approached the driver's side of the vehicle, he was shot multiple times and died at the scene.
At the time of the shooting, Sergeant Lingard was not wearing his protective vest.
The driver of the Mustang, Bayan Aleksey, immediately fled the scene, leading to a multi-county police chase. During the pursuit, the vehicle stopped long enough for a female passenger, Gloryvee Perez Blackwell, and her two children to exit. Aleksey then continued to flee before his vehicle was ultimately stopped by a law enforcement officer who intentionally collided with the Mustang. Aleksey was taken into custody and treated for injuries sustained in the crash. An investigation revealed that Aleksey had an extensive criminal record, including outstanding warrants, and that both the car and its license plate were stolen.
Both Bayan Aleksey and Gloryvee Perez Blackwell were charged with murder. Initially, Aleksey claimed that Blackwell was the driver and the shooter. However, he later confessed to the crime. Blackwell testified for the prosecution during the trial. Bayan Aleksey was subsequently convicted of the murder of First Sergeant Frankie Lingard and was sentenced to death. The South Carolina Supreme Court later affirmed his conviction and sentence.
