‘We’re working hard’: Horry County attorneys rolling through murder cases

HORRY COUNTY, SC (WMBF) - Horry County’s Violent Crime Prosecution team has cut the number of high-profile murder cases down by nearly half in just two years.

The team of five experienced prosecutors now only has 57 pending murder cases from the stack that quickly piled up during the pandemic.

When 15th Circuit Solicitor Jimmy Richardson started the team in 2022, they had 94 murder cases and got that number down to 70 within a year.

Richardson said they do not plan on slowing down any time soon.

“We’re really working hard,” Richardson said. “We had a murder case last week. It ended in a mistrial, but we started again. We ended one on Friday and started again on Monday, and it’s just rolling through them.”

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Richardson said the team is now working to get through the oldest cases in the pile, aiming to help those who have waited years for justice.

“This process is tough on victims,” Richardson said. “One way we can help with that is to hurry their loved ones’ cases along.” Justice never brings our family members back to us, but there is some amount of closure that goes along with that.”

Richardson said their goal is to get through the 28 cases three years old or older by August and then focus on the newer ones.

He said a third of those are already scheduled for a trial or a plea.

Richardson also said since starting the team, more people are pleading guilty, helping them get through the cases quicker.

A $200,000 grant pays for the team, and this is the third and final year, but Richardson said he hopes to keep the group together beyond then.

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