A Horry County jury is now weighing a case that began with a missing woman in Myrtle Beach and ended with human remains beneath a backyard firepit. Sheridan Fogle, 56, is on trial for murder in the death of Penni Whiteside, and his defense lawyer says he killed her in self-defense. Opening statements were set for Tuesday after jurors were seated Monday.
Fogle, of Orangeburg, South Carolina, is charged with murder in Whiteside's death, WBTW reports. According to the Post and Courier, he has pleaded not guilty and faces 30 years to life in prison if convicted. Prosecutor Nancy Livesay said the trial is expected to last until Oct. 29, with Circuit Judge G.D. Morgan Jr. overseeing the case.
Jury Seated, Competency Settled
The jurors who will hear the 2022 Myrtle Beach case were selected Monday, WMBF News reports. A forensic psychologist testified before the trial that Fogle is competent to stand trial.
The defense is expected to argue that Fogle acted in self-defense. WMBF notes that the defense says Whiteside came at him with a knife, though the dossier for this story does not verify whether she actually had one.
A Missing Woman and a Wooden Box
Whiteside, 51, was reported missing in May 2022, according to the Myrtle Beach Sun News. Her brother told police he had not spoken to her since Jan. 3, 2022. The date of the report is given two ways: the Sun News says her brother first reported her missing on May 10, while the Post and Courier lists May 11.
At the time, Whiteside and Fogle had been living together in the 600 block of 1st Avenue South in Myrtle Beach, per WMBF News. Police excavated the backyard firepit on June 12, 2024, and found a wooden box containing human remains, as the Sun News reported in an earlier account of the case. Investigators confirmed the remains were Whiteside's, and the arrest warrant listed her manner of death as “homicide by unspecified means.”
Two Versions of What Happened
Prosecutors say Fogle first told police that Whiteside had left him for another man, WBTW reports. He later said he strangled her and buried her body, according to prosecutors. The precise cause of death has not been verified beyond the reported homicide classification.
Fogle was arrested in Orangeburg on Aug. 29, 2024, about two months after the remains were found, per the Post and Courier. Now a jury in Conway will decide which account holds up, and whether the self-defense claim changes the outcome. No verdict has been reached.
