South Carolina Store Owner Acquitted of Murder in Shooting of Black Teen

A South Carolina jury acquitted store owner Chikei Rick Chow of murder in the 2023 shooting of 14-year-old Cyrus Carmack-Belton. The verdict prompted cries of distress from the teen's family in court.

South Carolina jury clears store owner who shot Black teen in the back

A South Carolina jury on Monday found convenience store owner Chikei Rick Chow, 61, not guilty of murder in the 2023 shooting of 14-year-old Cyrus Carmack-Belton, cbsnews.com reports.

Chow, who is Asian, shot Carmack-Belton in the back after chasing him from his Xpress Mart Shell station in Columbia. He maintained throughout the trial that he acted to protect his son. The killing sent waves of grief through the African American community in Richland County, where nearly half the population is Black.

When the verdict was read, sobs and cries of distress could be heard from Carmack-Belton's family in the public gallery. Chow sat frozen in silence before slowly bowing his head onto his interlocked hands.

Two conflicting accounts

Prosecutors and the defence drew sharply different pictures of the shooting during closing arguments. Prosecutors said Chow acted out of anger, wrongly believing the teenager had stolen four bottles of water from his store. Defence attorney Shaun Kent argued that Chow only opened fire after Carmack-Belton pointed a gun at his son, Andy Chow.

"This case is not about a shoplifter. This case is about a father who sees a gun pointed at his son and had to make a decision," Kent told jurors.

Prosecutors acknowledged that Carmack-Belton did carry a semiautomatic pistol, but said the weapon fell to the ground during the chase and that he never threatened anyone with it. They added that Chow pursued the teenager more than 130 yards from the store.

Solicitor Byron E. Gipson told jurors that Chow "chased a kid down, shot him in the back." During closing arguments, Gipson placed a bottle of water in front of the jury and said Chow "at the end of the day, believed that a human is not more than that."

Gipson also noted that multiple witnesses testified they did not see anything in Carmack-Belton's hands and did not see him point a gun as he fled the store. "Nobody testified that happened that doesn't have the last name Chow," Gipson said.

Gunshot to the back

Richland County Coroner Nadia Rutherford said at the time that there was no indication of any altercation between Chow and the teen inside the store before Carmack-Belton ran. She confirmed the teenager died from a gunshot wound to the right lower back, "consistent with someone who was running away."

Previous incidents at the same store

The fatal shooting in 2023 was not Chow's first use of a firearm at his convenience store. According to cbsnews.com, Chow had previously shot a shoplifter and opened fire on the vehicle of another shoplifter in two separate incidents. Officials ruled both earlier cases as self-defence.

Between 2018 and 2023, officers responded to hundreds of calls at Chow's store, covering assaults, larceny, shoplifting, motor vehicle theft, vandalism, robbery, and burglary.

The shooting prompted vigils and protests outside the store. At one 2023 vigil, empty water bottles were arranged to spell out "Cyrus."

Source: Google News MT — Crime (en)