Myrtle Beach man has murder charge in bar shooting downgraded, asks for bond hearing
SOCASTEE, S.C. (WBTW) — A Myrtle Beach man charged with murder in October after allegedly shooting two people outside a Socastee bar is now facing a lesser punishment.
Kvon Tyrese Lawhorn, 24, is now charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection with the Oct. 18 death of 23-year-old Starquan Washington outside of Barfield’s Bar & Grille.
Additional charges including attempted murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime remain, the 15th Circuit Solicitor’s Office told News13 on Tuesday.
The murder charge was downgraded earlier this month, and Lawhorn is waiting for a judge to rule whether he’s eligible for a bond hearing.
Lawhorn also has a criminal past, including an arrest after a reported armed robbery in November 2018 near Myrtle Beach. Lawhorn, who was 19 at the time, was among three adults and three juveniles arrested in the incident.
Barfield’s shut down in early November, shortly after the state Department of Revenue said it would revoke the bar’s liquor license.
The South Carolina Department of Revenue notified the owners in an Oct. 25 letter of its intent to revoke the bar’s licenses. According to the letter, Barfield’s had 30 days from the date of the letter to request a hearing with the South Carolina Administrative Law Court.
In the letter to Barfield’s owners, the state Department of Revenue said a gun believed to be the one used in the shooting was recovered from a “brushy area” behind the bar and that surveillance video shows the suspect “discarding a firearm in the same area.”
The letter also said the bartender told police that the suspected shooter was a regular at the bar and that it is “routine practice” to “secure the individual’s firearm” while inside the bar.
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Adam Benson joined the News13 digital team in January 2024. He is a veteran South Carolina reporter with previous stops at the Greenwood Index-Journal, Post & Courier and The Sun News in Myrtle Beach. Adam is a Boston native and University of Utah graduate. Follow Adam on X, formerly Twitter, at @AdamNewshound12. See more of his work here.
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