Good Samaritan rammed by SUV after domestic dispute at Sumter gas station
31-year-old suspect charged with attempted murder, domestic violence, assaulting an officer
A Sumter man has been charged with attempted murder stemming from a domestic dispute that ended with a good Samaritan being repeatedly ran into with an SUV.
David Lavern Hill, of Appaloosa Drive off Pinewood and Kolb roads, also faces a second-degree domestic violence charge and two counts of assaulting an officer while resisting arrest, according to Sumter Police Department Public Information Officer Tonyia McGirt.
The 31-year-old is accused of grabbing a 40-year-old family member by the hair and punching her multiple times as she tried to call for help while they were inside a parked Dodge Durango at the Fredrick’s Citgo on South Guignard Drive about 10:15 p.m. Sunday, according to McGirt.
The woman escaped when a 37-year-old bystander walked over and intervened, but Hill then reportedly slid to the driver’s seat and, after a “belligerent exchange with the good Samaritan and a 30-year-old witness parked nearby,” drove into the man, ramming him against the witness’ car, McGirt said.
She said he then backed up and rammed the man at least two more times before driving away.
Hill was later located by officers on Liberty Street, where he fought with them before they were able to detain him.
McGirt said the woman involved in the domestic dispute was treated for non-life-threatening injuries and later released from Prisma Health Tuomey Hospital. The 30-year-old witness was treated at the scene by EMS and released.
The good Samaritan is continuing to recover after being released from an area hospital Tuesday.
“This case is an example of the far-reaching dangers associated with domestic violence,” City of Sumter Police Chief Russell Roark said. “Sunday’s chain of events are the actions of someone we consider a threat not only to women, but also the community at large and to law enforcement.”
Hill is being held at the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office Detention Center, where he was denied bond on Tuesday and given a $10,000 surety bond for each of the other charges. The investigation is ongoing.