The Columbia Police Department is identifying the two patrolman involved in Wednesday’s officer involved shooting incident on Bush River Road.
Officer D. Robinson and G. Starcher, who are assigned to North Region, are on administrative duty with pay while the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) investigates the incident. The officers will attend required counseling, per department protocol.
Robinson, (B/M, age: 27) is a North Carolina native and has been with the CPD since June 2015.
Starcher, (W/M, age: 23) is from West Virginia, was hired in January 2017 and sworn in on Friday, April 21.
Neither officer was injured during yesterday’s incident at 1326 Bush River Road.
The suspect in the case has been positively identified as Joseph Ryan Morin-Sevrie (W/M) (DOB: 2-18-1992).
He’s accused of shooting at Columbia Police Officers and wounding a civilian in the arm yesterday. Today, the 76-year-old victim is in stable condition at a local hospital.
CPD officers were dispatched to the scene shortly before noon for a report about a man acting erratically inside the Wal-Mart.
Morin-Sevrie was armed and seen by officers leaving the store and heading to a nearby gas station. The civilian was there, pumping gas when he was shot during an attempted carjacking.
Morin-Sevrie allegedly fired his weapon at officers. As a result, officers discharged their duty weapon, wounding Morin-Sevrie who remains at a local hospital.
Responding officers checked on the suspect and civilian immediately following the shooting incident.
While an ambulance was on the way to the scene, Officers D. Robinson and B. Martin applied a tourniquet to the civilian’s arm to stop the severe bleeding.
Last December, Martin helped save the life of fellow officer A. Hardesty when she was stabbed by an escaped inmate at the same Bush River Road Wal-Mart. Due to his immediate action, Chief Holbrook presented Martin with the 2016 Meritorious Service Award. Martin has been with the CPD since July 2015.
Suspect Sevrie-Morin has an extensive criminal history. In particular, he was released from the South Carolina Department of Corrections (SCDC) last November and was on probation after serving time for a 2013 burglary charge in Lexington County.
SLED continues its investigation into the officer involved shooting and all possible charges against Morin-Sevrie.