A 16-year-old was fatally shot at a Jasper County motel Sunday, coroner says
A 16-year-old female died of a gunshot wound early Sunday morning at the Forest Motel in Ridgeland, Jasper County Coroner Martin Sauls confirmed Monday.
Cypress Noonan of Ridgeland was shot at around 6 a.m. on Sunday over Labor Day weekend inside a room at the motel, according to Sauls. Ridgeland Police Chief Richard Woods declined to give a statement Monday morning, but confirmed there was a shooting and said an investigation is ongoing.
The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division is involved in the case, Woods said.
SLED spokesperson Tommy Crosby said his agency was leading the investigation after being called to the crime scene. Crosby wouldn’t provide further details or answer questions about possible suspects, citing the active law enforcement proceedings.
Based on the information available at this time, “we do not believe there is an immediate threat to the public,” Crosby said, adding that SLED will release further information as it deems appropriate.
As of Monday morning, no one had been booked into the Jasper County Detention Center on related charges, online jail records show.
A call to the Forest Motel, located along U.S. Hwy. 17 less than a mile south of downtown Ridgeland, was not answered.
This story was originally published September 7, 2020 at 10:02 AM.
