Family, attorneys call for action after Black man killed by SC officer in Georgetown Co.

The family of a Black man who was fatally shot by a South Carolina police officer over the weekend in Georgetown County called for justice for their loved one, saying Wednesday that he should still be alive.

Robert Junior Langley, 46, of Hemingway, was killed Sunday by an officer with the Hemingway Police Department in Williamsburg County. The officer, Sgt. Cassandra Dollard, was pursuing Langley in a chase that crossed county lines, ultimately ending in a wreck at Choppee and Schoolhouse roads, according to a Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office Facebook post.

Dollard was booked into Georgetown County Detention Center Wednesday afternoon and charged with voluntary manslaughter, according to the detention center, and Dollard’s employment with the Hemingway PD was confirmed by a January Facebook post.

The family is being represented by civil rights attorneys Bakari Sellers and state Senator Gerald Malloy. They joined family members at a news conference in front of the Georgetown County Courthouse Wednesday morning.

“We do know Robert Langley should be alive today. We do know he was taken from us in a cruel fashion — in an unjust fashion. We know that he was unarmed,” Sellers said. “From what we’ve seen today on that video we can tell you that we believe, and this family believes, a crime was committed.”

Roslyn Langley, Robert Langley’s mom, spoke of her son and how much they depended on each other. She said that it is now up to her to step up and lead her household.

“It hurts when you have a child, and someone takes that child from you unnecessarily,” she said. “For me, it is just a cruel way to take a man’s life.”

Roslyn Langley said her son was the “sweetest man in the world” and never sought to hurt anyone. She recalled a story about how Robert Langley was beat up by a group of boys to the point his eye came out of his socket. Instead of seeking revenge like most boys, she said, he let it go and moved on.

“He lived, he worked and he took care of his family. That was his goal — to take care of his family. Now, I want to know who else is going to take of his family like he did,” she said of her son, a father of 10. “... They took him from me, and they also took him from his children.”

The shooting happened in the Pleasant Hill area of the county, according to a Tuesday news release promoting the news conference.

On Wednesday, Sellers said the pursuit of Robert Langley started with him driving through a stop sign, adding that it wasn’t a “death penalty crime.”

The family and their attorneys met Wednesday morning with 15th Circuit Solicitor Jimmy Richardson II and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, which is investigating the death. The family was able to view the footage from the officer’s dash camera, but they didn’t say what it showed.

However, Sellers said the family saw their son, father and brother killed.

“They were able to see him being shot unjustifiably,” he said. “They were able to hear him gargling blood and fighting for air — for his life. They were able to go through and see every image that you dare not want to see.”

It is not clear if or when the body camera footage will be released.

In addition to the 10 kids, Robert Langley had one granddaughter. Tyrek Langley, one of Robert Langley’s sons, said his dad always encouraged him to be better a person than him and was always available when he needed to talk.

“I have a 3-month-old baby, and the only thing she’ll be able to remember about her granddaddy is through pictures ...” he said. “... She won’t be able to talk with my daddy.”

An autopsy is scheduled for Friday at Medical University of South Carolina.

“I’m going to hold my family together,” Roslyn Langley said. “I’m not going to let them fold.”

This story was originally published February 9, 2022 at 1:55 PM.