Coroner ID’s dead man in Bluffton officer-involved shooting; 3 agencies investigating

Three separate agencies are now investigating Saturday’s officer-involved shooting that resulted in the death of 34-year-old Anthony Barnhill of Bluffton.

The situation began with Sheriff’s officers attempting to perform a traffic stop for an outstanding first-degree burglary warrant. Barnhill sped away and subsequently crashed into a tree and fence in front of The Farm at Buckwalter neighborhood. The crash ended with an exchange of gunfire and Barnhill being fatally shot. Beaufort County Coroner David Ott places the time of death at 3:03 p.m. Saturday.

A resident of the nearby neighborhood reported hearing the sounds of 10 to 20 gunshots.

Barnhill’s autopsy was scheduled for Wednesday at the Medical University of South Carolina. Those details have not yet been released.

Two Beaufort County deputies who fired shots in the incident have been put on temporary paid leave for the duration of the internal investigation, which Sheriff P.J. Tanner estimates will last two to three weeks. Placing the officers on leave is typical for officer-involved shooting investigations. As an example, after Jasper County’s officer-involved shooting at the beginning of May, one county deputy and three Hardeeville officers were placed on administrative leave.

As is standard procedure to avoid bias, the Saturday officer-involved shooting investigation was turned over to the S.C. Law Enforcement Division (SLED). Meanwhile, the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office will be reviewing their pursuit policies and use-of-force guidelines as part of an internal investigation, Sheriff Tanner said on Wednesday. The S.C. Highway Patrol is investigating the crash that preceded the deadly shooting.

In July, Barnhill was the subject of a manhunt in the Old Town area after fighting with and fleeing from officers who were attempting to arrest him on an outstanding assault warrant. In that incident he was later taken into custody and released on a $6,527.50 cash bond.

The sequence of events that ended with gunfire

Sheriff’s deputies first tried to pull Barnhill over on Friday but ended the pursuit. The reason for suspending Friday’s pursuit is part of the ongoing internal investigation. Saturday afternoon, another attempt to apprehend Barnhill on the first-degree burglary warrant resulted in a chase that started on May River Road near downtown Bluffton and ended with a crash and the fatal exchange of gunfire near the entrance to The Farm at Buckwalter.

Tanner said none of the law enforcement personnel involved were injured. State Highway Patrol and Bluffton police were also on the scene but only Sheriff’s Office deputies fired shots in the incident, he added.

Saturday marked the 34th officer-involved shooting in South Carolina this year, but the first in Beaufort County, according to data provided by SLED. The shootout comes six months after Jasper County police exchanged gunfire with 33-year-old Calaab Kirby, killing the Army veteran after an apparent road rage dispute on I-95 in Hardeeville.