Dispute between chicken plant employees ends when one is shot 15 times, prosecutor says

A dispute between two employees at a chicken plant in Lexington County ended with one fatally shooting the other more than a dozen times, the 11th Circuit Solicitor’s Office said Tuesday.

Trevor Anthony Irvin, 30, was convicted on a murder charge from the June 24, 2021 shooting in the parking lot at the House of Raeford chicken plant in West Columbia, the solicitor’s office said in a news release. That’s near Jarvis Klapman Boulevard, and less than a mile from the Gervais Street bridge.

On June 23, Irvin was sentenced to 45 years in prison, without the chance of parole, for killing 33-year-old Columbia resident Daniel Demetrius Jones, according to the release.

Irvin worked as a line lead at the House of Raeford, and was in the same section of the plant as Jones during the night shift, the solicitor’s office said.

Because of previous disagreements, Jones and his girlfriend were no longer working on the line Irvin primarily worked, according to the release.

The day of the shooting

On the day of the shooting, Irvin confronted Jones spurring a verbal altercation on Jones’ new line., and a witness testified that he had to move Irvin off the line to get him away from Jones, the solicitor’s office said. The testimony revealed that Irvin disrespected Jones and his girlfriend.

While moving Irvin away from Jones, Irvin threatened to kill Jones and told Jones that he would “F*** (him) up in the parking lot,” the solicitor’s office said.

When their shifts ended sometime around 6:30 a.m., Irvin and Jones ended up in the Capitol Square Parking lot across the street from the chicken plant and eventually at a gas station behind a nearby shopping center where an altercation ensued, according to the release.

West Columbia police officers got video surveillance from the gas station which showed Irvin pulling out a gun and/or showing his firearm to Jones approximately seven times. During the altercation, Irvin throws a punch at Jones, but others intervened to separate the two men, the solicitor’s office said.

The two men ended up back in the parking lot, where Irvin stood on cars and taunted Jones, according to the release.

After a few minutes, Irvin briefly left returned in an effort to get Jones to fight him, the solicitor’s office said. At one point, Irvin slapped his own face telling Jones to “hit me.” Irvin also threw air punches in an effort to get Jones to fight him, according to the release.

As soon as Jones decided to engage, Irvin shot Jones 15 times as Jones ducked and tried to run away from the gunshots, the solicitor’s office said.

Irvin continued to shoot Jones while he was on the ground, and an autopsy showed that Jones was shot in the head, abdomen, hand, and back, according to the release.

The shooting took place at 7:07 a.m. and West Columbia police quickly responded to the scene, where Jones eventually died despite initially having a pulse when officers arrived, the solicitor’s office said.

Shooter said it was self defense

Irvin was not on the scene when the police arrived, but eventually returned and approached a police officer saying that he shot in self-defense, according to the release. During the trial, Irvin testified that he was in fear for his life at the time of the shooting, the solicitor’s office said.

The evidence and testimony in the week-long trial revealed that Irvin did not act in self-defense, and after about 90 minutes of deliberating the jury convicted Irvin of murder, according to the release.

Jones was a loving father, friend, brother, and son who did not deserve to lose his life in such a senseless and brutal killing, the solicitor’s office said.

Senior Assistant Solicitor Sutania Fuller and Deputy Solicitor Rhonda Patterson led the prosecution for the solicitor’s office. Lexington County court records show Irvin was represented by Columbia attorney John Mobley.

In addition to the West Columbia Police Department, the case was investigated by the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division.