14-year-old boy killed in shooting at St. Helena home, Beaufort deputies say
After a shooting at a St. Helena Island home late Friday night, a mother’s efforts to rush her unresponsive 14-year-old son to the hospital were aided by sheriff’s deputies and emergency crews at an intersection south of the Penn Center.
The teen later died at the hospital as a result of at least one gunshot wound, appearing to become Beaufort County’s youngest victim of gun violence since 14-year-old Jerrieme “L.J.” Washington was killed in a drive-by shooting on his Burton home in early 2024.
As of Monday, no arrests had been made in connection with Friday night’s deadly shooting, according to the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office.
More than a dozen deputies responded around 11:55 p.m. Friday to a report of a gunshot wound off Capers Island Circle, part of a small neighborhood connected by dirt roads on southwestern St. Helena. Dispatchers told police “14-year-old male juvenile” was being driven to the hospital by his mother, according to a BCSO incident report.
As they rushed to the hospital via Lands End Road, deputies encountered the mother’s vehicle. The boy’s mother helped police carry the victim, who was “unresponsive and not breathing,” out of the backseat and onto the ground so deputies could begin CPR, the report says.
Emergency crews responded shortly after and took the 14-year-old victim to Beaufort Memorial Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
Deputies later searched the home on Capers Island Circle where the deadly shooting occurred, finding a large amount of blood throughout. On the floor next to the refrigerator, police found one .45-caliber bullet casing, the report says.
One bedroom was described as having “substantial amount of blood drip stains on the floor leading to the bed,” with the door frame of the room’s entrance having “bloodstains flowing downwards.” Multiple firearms were found on the bed, according to the incident report.
The home’s backdoor also had bloodstains on the interior and exterior handles, deputies noted.
BCSO spokesperson Lt. Danny Allen confirmed Monday that the shooting happened inside the home on Capers Island Circle. He would not say how many shooters were believed to be involved, adding that the circumstances of the fatal gunfire remained under investigation.
Staff at the Beaufort County Coroner’s Office had not identified the deceased teenager as of noon Monday.
This report will be updated as more information becomes available.
This story was originally published July 21, 2025 at 1:23 PM.
