COLUMBIA, S.C. — New details are emerging regarding a chase last week involving Richland County deputies and a suspect which ended in a fatal crash on Interstate 126 in Columbia.
The chase began on Bush River Road around 2:30 p.m. on December 29th when officers spotted a wanted suspect from Lexington County. The sheriff's department identified the man as 48-year-old Byron Pringle, who was wanted on drug charges with a suspended license.
According to the incident report obtained by News19, a Richland County deputy, en route to a special assignment, received a request from an undercover Lexington County sheriff's deputy for assistance in apprehending Pringle.
The report said that the deputy located Pringle's vehicle on Bush River Road crossing I-126 towards Broad River Road. The deputy tried to pull him over, the report said, but Pringle failed to comply, reportedly driving at a high rate of speed in the opposite direction on Greystone Boulevard.
He eventually hopped a median and drove into oncoming traffic on Interstate 126, according to the report, and began traveling on Greystone and then I-126 in the opposite direction of traffic. Deputies estimated that during the chase he was believed traveling at 70-80 mph,. Eventually, they said he crashed head-on into another vehicle.
Pringle was declared dead at the scene by EMS. The driver of the other vehicle was taken to the hospital for treatment but survived.
News19 reached out to the Richland County Sheriff’s Department to speak about the pursuit but they declined an interview, stating that the incident is still under investigation by the South Carolina Highway Patrol.
Jackie Swindler, whose the director of the S.C. Criminal Justice Academy, which helps train law enforcement officers, emphasized the dangers of pursuits.
"What we teach here is precision driving, we teach all about the dynamics of a car, what it does under those types of conditions as far as speed and road conditions on and off the road," Swindler says. "We do not dictate, whether or not someone does pursue or not."
Columbia resident Larry Watson expressed concern about high-speed chases, stating, "I support law enforcement when it comes to enforcing the law, however, I think that the policy of high-speed chase needs to be revisited. I think it jeopardizes the public in a way that's not necessary,".
The S.C. Criminal Justice Academy highlighted that each agency has a pursuit policy, but they vary by agency. "There are agencies who will pursue for any failure to stop for law enforcement, and then there are those that pursues only for very serious offenses," Swindler said.
A new law in South Carolina, however, mandates that every agency have one of these policies. "Under South Carolina law last year the legislature had nine policies that every agency has to save and one of them is a pursuit policy so the agency has to have a policy."
The law went into effect in January 2023. The SC Criminal Justice Academy sent evaluations to each agency to make sure they had policies written, and they will check to see if they have put them into practice over the coming years.
The other person hit head-on was taken to the hospital for treatment, and two other vehicles were involved in the collision.
The South Carolina Highway Patrol is investigating the incident.