Darrelle “Beanz” Ross Smith, a 39-year-old man from the Mullins, South Carolina, area, was killed in a burst of gunfire during the early morning hours of August 29, 2026. The shooting unfolded in the 4000 block of Zion Road near Millers Road in Marion County. Smith was later identified by Marion County Coroner Jerry Richardson as one of two people who died at the scene. The other person killed was Tyshawnta Davis.
When Marion County Sheriff's Office deputies reached the area, they encountered a chaotic scene. According to the incident report, approximately nine or ten distraught witnesses were present, with people reportedly yelling that two individuals had shot each other. Deputies located two victims suffering from fatal gunshot wounds. A third person had also been shot but was expected to survive. Investigators found evidence of extensive gunfire, recovering more than 50 spent cartridge casings from two separate areas of the scene. The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division assisted local investigators with processing the location and collecting evidence.
Although the statements made by witnesses initially raised the possibility that the two people who died had exchanged gunfire, investigators cautioned against drawing that conclusion. When specifically asked whether Smith and Davis had shot one another, the Marion County Sheriff's Office said investigators had not reached that determination. Authorities indicated that evidence still needed to be examined and witness accounts evaluated before they could establish exactly who fired the weapons, what prompted the shooting, or how the surviving wounded person was involved.
Smith was born December 10, 1986. His obituary identified him as the son of Herman Legette and Amie Brown and the father of Jada Smith and King Smith. His death left his family preparing funeral services while investigators continued trying to reconstruct the violence that ended his life. Funeral services were held September 10 at Bethel Word Ministries in Mullins, followed by burial at Resthaven Memorial Gardens.
As of the latest publicly available reporting located through September 23, 2026, authorities had not announced an arrest, filed criminal charges, or publicly identified an outside suspect in connection with Smith's death. The sheriff's office continued to treat the circumstances as an active investigation and asked witnesses, particularly anyone possessing relevant information or recordings of the incident, to come forward. The unresolved question remained whether the deadly gunfire was exchanged among people at the scene or involved other individuals whose roles had not yet been established publicly.
