A Gaffney man and a Spartanburg woman are facing attempted murder charges after a shooting tore through downtown Gaffney early Monday morning, according to the Gaffney Police Department. Officers responded to the 600 block of North Limestone Street around 3:20 a.m. and secured the scene as detectives began piecing together what happened.
Douglas Tremel Byers, of Gaffney, and Ronteria Denise Spencer, of Spartanburg, were both charged with attempted murder, and Spencer was additionally charged with possession of a weapon during a violent crime, according to WYFF. Detectives identified the two as suspects after reviewing surveillance footage from multiple downtown locations and interviewing witnesses, the station reports.
Search Warrants Lead to Oakland Avenue Seizures
As part of the investigation, officers executed search warrants at homes on the 500 block of Oakland Avenue, where they seized multiple firearms and narcotics, per the station's report. Investigators say the case remains ongoing and additional charges are possible as the inquiry continues.
The arrests also drew in law enforcement beyond Cherokee County. The Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office Warrant Division conducted operations in Spartanburg County related to the case, with assistance from South Carolina Probation, Parole and Pardon Services, according to the same account. Spartanburg and Gaffney sit along the same Upstate Interstate 85 corridor, and all felony prosecutions from both Cherokee and Spartanburg counties are handled by the 7th Judicial Circuit Solicitor's Office, led by Solicitor Barry Barnette, according to the Cherokee County Solicitor's Office.
Chief Knight Vows Continued Enforcement
Gaffney Police Chief Gerald Knight, who took office in June 2021 after a 23-year law enforcement career in the Upstate region according to The Gaffney Ledger, said violent crime has no place in the city of Gaffney. “Gaffney officers and investigators will use every available resource to identify those responsible and hold them accountable,” Knight said, according to WYFF's report.
Knight added that law enforcement partners will continue working to protect the community, and said Gaffney should remain a safe place to live, work, and raise a family. The department is asking the public to contact investigators with any information, video, or other assistance that could aid the case.
Downtown Corridor's History of Late-Night Enforcement
The 600 block of North Limestone Street has drawn police attention before. In November 2022, Gaffney officers seized multiple firearms and narcotics and arrested three people following a 1:30 a.m. disturbance outside a commercial venue on that same block, per The Gaffney Ledger's earlier reporting.
Under South Carolina Code § 16-3-29, attempted murder is a felony punishable by up to 30 years in prison, and the statute strictly prohibits probation or a suspended sentence, according to Justia Law. Separately, South Carolina Code § 16-23-490 mandates an additional, consecutive five-year prison term for anyone convicted of possessing or displaying a firearm during a violent crime, the same legal reference notes.
A City Already on Edge
The shooting arrives roughly a month after Gaffney was shaken by another act of gun violence. In August, 17-year-old Jomiltron Sentell Fair Jr. was fatally shot near the Granard Court apartments while boarding a school bus, a case Hoodline previously covered and which prompted Gaffney Mayor Lyman Dawkins III to call for community healing, according to WCNC.
Gaffney, the county seat of Cherokee County, had a population of 12,764 at the 2020 U.S. Census and spans roughly 8.7 square miles, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. For now, investigators say the downtown shooting case remains open, and both Byers and Spencer face the weight of South Carolina's mandatory sentencing statutes as the 7th Judicial Circuit Solicitor's Office moves the case toward prosecution.
