A road rage confrontation along Hallsboro Road North in an area with a Clarkton mailing address turned into gunfire Tuesday afternoon, leaving 29-year-old Willie James Shine II wounded and his Chrysler riddled with bullet holes. Shine was located in the 6300 block of Hallsboro Road North after being struck by at least one bullet around 3 p.m., and EMS crews rushed him to an area hospital for treatment.
Columbus County News reported the shooting, detailing how a female suspect allegedly opened fire on Shine's vehicle during the altercation, causing an estimated $15,000 in damage to the car. According to a report cited by the outlet, the Columbus County Sheriff's Office is investigating the incident, which unfolded on North Hallsboro Road in an area with a Clarkton mailing address.
Columbus County News described the suspect as a woman.
Sheriff's Office Investigates Shooting
The Columbus County Sheriff's Office is investigating the shooting.
Columbus County Sheriff's Deputy Damien Bost was killed in a tractor-trailer crash near the Hallsboro Road exit on U.S. 74/76 during a highway repaving project, per the Officer Down Memorial Page. Bost had served eight years with the department before the fatal crash.
North Carolina Firearm Laws
North Carolina law sets felony penalties for discharging a firearm into an occupied vehicle. Under General Statute § 14-34.1, discharging a firearm into an occupied vehicle is a Class E felony, which elevates to a Class D felony carrying stiffer prison sentences if the vehicle was in operation at the time of the shooting, according to FindLaw.
North Carolina allows a loaded firearm in a vehicle without a permit only if it stays in plain view, while a concealed handgun inside a car requires a valid Concealed Handgun Permit, according to the Law Office of Kevin L. Barnett.
National Road-Rage Shooting Data
Firearm violence tied to traffic disputes has been documented nationally. Research from Everytown for Gun Safety found that 483 people were shot in road rage incidents across the United States in 2023, an average of one person wounded or killed every 18 hours, according to Everytown Research & Policy.
That same research found that states without concealed carry permit requirements experienced nearly triple the rate of road rage shooting victimizations compared to states with stricter firearm permitting standards. North Carolina repealed its pistol purchase permit system in 2023 but retained its concealed carry permit requirements.
Hoodline has covered other Columbus County crashes in recent weeks, part of a broader run of Carolinas road rage cases making headlines this month. No further updates on the search for the suspect had been released as of Wednesday.
