A man out of North Charleston, South Carolina, was apprehended in Charleston County on August 9, 2019 on counts of Driving Under Suspension (DUS), and — most notably — Hit and Run with Property Damage.
Judge Sheryl M. Perry of the Ravenel/Adams Run Area Magistrate Court granted Brandon Devon Ancrum, 29, personal recognizance bond on both offenses. This is despite Mr. Ancrum’s involvement in a 2010 collision that resulted in the death of a 33-year-old young father of two.
According to court documents, Mr. Ancrum was traveling southbound on US Highway 17 at approximately 1:45 P.M. in a 1995 Ford automobile. The deceased, Johnathan W. Capps, was driving northbound in a 2007 Chevrolet automobile.
Mr. Ancrum was traveling in excess of 80 miles per hour when he struck the passenger side of Mr. Capps’s vehicle, causing it to flip multiple times and resulting in the victim’s death. He is survived by his two sons, wife and parents.
Brandon Ancrum was ultimately convicted of Reckless Homicide just over three years later.
To worsen the optics of Mr. Ancrum’s character, he was arrested for an out-of-county charge of Driving Under the Influence in 2016 (to which he pleaded guilty to), and is on the receiving end of domestic violence and child cruelty-related offenses. Both were earned in 2017, and were pleaded guilty to in different degrees in 2018.
And by Judge Perry going forth with the obscene decision to neglect her core responsibility of protecting the innocent from harm caused by individuals like Mr. Ancrum, she has failed in her duties as a magistrate and her job security should be in doubt.
By failing to used adequate discretion in this atonement, Perry should be directly responsible for any damage inflicted upon another victim of Mr. Ancrum’s: He stole the most precious gift one could ever have — a life. A living, breathing example of everything we are and will be.
This is one of the most irresponsible of judicial decisions we have bore witness to in our reporting. And we are accounting for Joshua Nix’s Piggly Wiggly knife-assault that left four injured and resulted in an extended prison stay — which didn’t stop the now-retired Judge Baldwin from gifting him personal recognizance bond on subsequent charges.
Let Officials Know There is No Place for This in Charleston
Taking action has never been simpler — all you have to do is sign onto this pledge to fill in elected officials and lawmakers on your disapproval of the current system that allowed Brandon Ancrum to ‘get off’ without paying a cent.
Your support has built Charleston Jail Watch into a local force, attracting the attention of the local media and other prominent voices; it has stifled attempts by the Charleston Criminal Justice Coordinating Council from an unabridged pursuit, lacking any accountability. And for that, we are forever indebted to you — the heart of the Charleston community.