Suspect killed in shootout with deputies
Police have killed a man who started a shootout near Broad River and St. Andrews roads Tuesday afternoon, The State reported.
Adam Jurgen, 24, shot deputy Sheila Aull in the chest during the shootout at Farrington Apartments. Aull was wearing a bulletproof vest at the time. Capt. Chris Cowan, Richland County Sheriff’s Department spokesman, told The State that she was taken to a hospital but survived the shooting.
Deputies began searching for Jurgen Tuesday in connection to a domestic assault that was reported about 1:30 p.m. When they first made contact, he fired multiple rounds at deputies, according to The State.
He fled to the Farrington apartment complex, where he continued shooting at police until he was shot and killed around 2:45 p.m., The State reported.
— Sydney Patterson, Managing Editor
SC House to vote on strengthening FOIA
The House Judiciary Committee is sending a bill strengthening South Carolina’s Freedom of Information Act to the full House, The Post and Courier reported.
The committee also approved an amendment to the bill that would stop state lawmakers from keeping emails and other communication secret.
The proposal by Rep. Bill Taylor, a Republican from Aiken, would reduce the time officials have to respond to open records requests, limit fees for the information, set harsher penalties for not cooperating and create a new appeals process for disputes, according to The Post and Courier.
The Judiciary Committee defeated a separate proposed amendment that would have allowed public officials to use personal devices and email accounts for public business without those communications counting as public records, The Post and Courier reported.
— Sydney Patterson, Managing Editor
Historical warehouse to be demolished
The Palmetto Compress building near the intersection of Blossom and Pulaski streets is set to be torn down by its owners, The State reported.
One of the owners told The State the operating expenses of the storage business have exceeded income for years, and they could no longer afford the property.
Ohio-based Edwards Communities has sought approval from a city commission to build an 818-bed private housing complex on the site, but that process was stalled by appeals, Free Times reported.
Demolition is not a condition of the sale of the site, according to The State, and it will continue no matter the fate of the complex.
Because of its association with local African-American history, historic preservationists are trying to stop the demolition, The State reported. Tearing down the building would cost $381,000 and could take until Sept. 1.
— Sydney Patterson, Managing Editor