In the early hours of May 12, 2024, violence erupted on Evans Court just outside of Mullins, South Carolina, leaving a 29-year-old Black man, Devante Marquise Legette, dead from a shooting. The incident, which occurred at approximately 5 a.m., also resulted in injuries to two other individuals. These two victims were transported by private vehicles to the MUSC Marion Emergency Department and were expected to survive their injuries.
At the time of this report, the Marion County Sheriff's Office has not publicly identified any suspects or made any arrests in connection with the shooting. The investigation is ongoing and has been described as 'very active' by authorities, who have urged anyone with information to come forward.
Legette's life was marked by his own encounters with the legal system. At the time of his death, he was facing murder and other charges related to the October 2023 death of James Cross Jr. in Marion. Following Legette's own demise, these charges were formally dismissed on May 13, 2024. This was not his first serious charge; in a 2017 shooting that resulted in the death of Freddie Lee Woodberry of Mullins, Legette was initially charged with attempted murder. He later pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of first-degree assault and battery and was sentenced to five years in prison. The community of Mullins continues to await answers as investigators work to unravel the circumstances that led to the untimely death of Devante Marquise Legette.
