In the early hours of a Monday morning in Columbia, South Carolina, the life of 58-year-old Kevin Brown was tragically cut short. He was discovered alone in his vehicle on Floyd Drive, suffering from a gunshot wound to his upper body. The Columbia Police Department responded to the scene shortly before 3:30 a.m. after receiving a ShotSpotter alert, a system that detects and locates gunfire.
An investigation into the shooting led authorities to 24-year-old Benjamin T. Patterson Jr.
Believed to have confronted Brown just moments before the fatal shot was fired, Patterson was located and apprehended on Garners Ferry Road a few hours after the incident. The Richland County Sheriff's Department assisted the Columbia Police Department in the investigation that led to Patterson's arrest. The motive for the shooting is still under investigation, and it is unclear if Patterson and Brown knew each other.
Patterson was subsequently charged with murder, possession of a weapon during a violent crime, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. His criminal history includes a prior conviction for domestic violence, which legally prohibited him from possessing a firearm. At the time of his arrest for Brown's murder, Patterson was out on bond for pending charges of manufacturing and distributing cocaine base, as well as a recent charge of third-degree domestic violence. He was booked into the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center, where he was held without bond.
